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Hope Center wins $167,600 grant to create large mural

The Hope Center of Hendersonville has received a grant of $167,600 to support the creation of a 2,600-square-foot mural that depicts members of the center.

By Lightning Reports, Published: June 25, 2023

The Hope Center of Hendersonville has received a grant of $167,600 from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation’s Inclusive Public Art Initiative to support the creation of a 2,600-square-foot mural that depicts members of the center.
 
Supported by Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and Mellon Foundation, the grants will help nine organizations across the state use public art to spotlight untold stories in their communities.
The Hope Center project will also feature three larger-than-life metal sculptures, made of recycled materials, representing adults with disabilities. Both projects will feature collaborations between artists Robert Allen and Becky Bonnema and members of the Hope Center.

The Hope Center of Hendersonville is a day program for adults 18 years and older with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Founded in 2007 as Hope Academy, the program offers opportunities for members to build friendships and social skills, continue life skill development, make choices on how they spend their time and co-create meaningful ways to spend the days together. The organization’s mission is to “nurture an environment where members are valued, provided opportunities and treated with God’s love and compassion.” Hope Center members are racially and ethnically diverse, and have a variety of physical, mental and developmental disabilities. This public art project will be located front and center, on a well-traveled roadway, lifting up the members and granting much-needed visibility through authentic representation.