AA St. Paul Saints

Saints Team Up With Kids, Free Arts Minnesota for Midway Mural Project

Published on July 13, 2009 under American Association (AA)
St. Paul Saints News Release


ST. PAUL, MN (July 13, 2009) - Fans who arrive at Midway Stadium are immediately greeted by artwork. The murals in and around the ballpark are a welcoming site for fans as they arrive on the boulevard outside the stadium, pass the side of the ballpark on Energy Park Drive and enter the facility through the front gates. The St. Paul Saints have teamed up with Free Arts Minnesota and local youth from the Wilder Bush Children's Center to update and add to the collection in and around the stadium.

Starting today, the group of youngsters will be joined by Jane Elias, a local muralist, to put their stamp on the ballpark with a new, collaborative public mural on the sidewalk near the main parking area at Midway Stadium. The mural will allow participant voices to be heard through community art. In planning for the project, the young artisters were asked to discover what community means to them and how it affects their world. With guidance from Volunteer Art Mentors, the youth will explore the social benefits of public art and create a permanent piece that they can visit for year to come.

This is the latest in several of arts-based initiatives developed by the Saints for the 2009 season in memory of their artist and friend, Andy Nelson, who passed away last October. Nelson is responsible for most of the artwork in and around the ballpark.

"The Twin Cities Art community has been a tremendous help to us in many of these endeavors," said Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Derek Sharrer. "This is an amazing project by Free Arts Minnesota and the Wilder Bush Children's Center that will help enhance the aesthetic beauty of our ballpark for fans and members of the community."

The painting will run from 1:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. weekdays from July 13 to July 23. On Saturday, July 25, the final mural will be unveiled at approximately 4:00 p.m., three hours before the Saints game that night.

Free Arts Minnesota began serving children in residential treatment centers, battered women's shelters and therapeutic pre-schools in 1997. It seeks to interrupt the cycles of violence through painting, drawing, music, writing, drama and other creative outlets. The program serves as a catalyst to help children communicate and express themselves in new, and positive, ways.

The Wilder Bush Children's Center provides residential treatment and on-site school for children ages five to 14 who currently can't live at home, either because of their own behaviors or because of abusive or neglectful home situations.

The Saints have partnered with the Wilder Foundation for nearly four years and Saints front office staff member Mike Nachreiner has served as a volunteer with Free Arts Minnesota for the past year and helped to coordinate this project.

For more information, call 651-644-6659 or visit saintsbaseball.com.

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