Painted desert
Mesquite Elementary School boasts new mural
When students return to Mesquite Elementary School this fall under Crane School District’s hybrid learning model, they’ll find a vibrant desert landscape blooming in their own courtyard.
Located at 4451 W. 28th St., the school’s courtyard previously boasted six shade trees that posed a safety hazard over time as their roots started raising the concrete up to 3 and 4 inches in places, according to Principal Karen Burns.
Without the trees, however, the courtyard was bare and in need of a rem
edy to restore the beauty that was removed with them. It was Burns’ laptop case — a scene of desert cacti — that inspired the idea to add a mural to the exterior wall facing the courtyard. And she knew exactly who to call for the job.
Building on a past collaboration that brought some color to Mesquite’s four bathrooms, Burns reached out to Among Wolves Tattoo Studio’s co-owner George Sanchez, who agreed to donate his time and talent on one condition: the school wasn’t allowed to pay him. Instead, it could provide the spray paint.
“We had teachers pitching in, we had friends of teachers pitching in, everybody was really on board with it,” Burns said.
For three days beginning around 6:30 a.m., Sanchez donated a few hours of his time and talent to bring Burns’ vision — and the courtyard — to life. It was his first big mural project, but according to Burns, “he made it look so easy,” and the finished product is even more breathtaking than the photos depict.
“The mural really lights up the whole courtyard and changes the focus of the trees being gone,” she said. “(Sanchez) took a dull area and made it so vibrant and beautiful. Having relationships like this with community members brings things to the school that we wouldn’t be able to have otherwise. These relationships are so important because the kids need to know their community is there for them to support them.”
As for Sanchez, he was “more than happy” to rise to the occasion.
“For me, it’s about the kids’ pleasure of seeing something bright and colorful that’s more than just a brick wall and will brighten their day,” he said. “Just knowing that it might put a smile on at least one kid’s face is worth it to me.”
To passersby, the mural is visible through the gate at the student drop-off area on the west side of the school.
Gisela Therese Dyer, 87, of Yuma, died June 24, 2020, in Yuma.
Born July 22, 1932, in Koblenz, Germany, she was a homemaker.