The mountain and the youth center share the name – El Toro – and
kids from the center chose to use the mountain as the centerpiece
of a two-piece mural that they created to hang inside Community
Solutions.
The mountain and the youth center share the name – El Toro – and kids from the center chose to use the mountain as the centerpiece of a two-piece mural that they created to hang inside Community Solutions.
“I like to draw, but I’m not good at it, but I learned a lot,” said Lizette Gonzalez, 12, who attends P.A. Walsh Elementary and was one of 12 pre-teens to participate in the project. “The artist showed us a lot of good things, taught us how to do certain stuff and let us make whatever we wanted for the mural.”
The El Toro Youth Center, located on Crest Avenue off West Main Avenue, serves as a place for kids and teens to come after school to work on homework and participate in activities, including using and learning about computers.
El Toro mountain dominates the Morgan Hill horizon to the west, a distinctive landmark some say resembles a bull when viewed from certain directions.
Artist Judy Gittelsohn, who offers her expertise for many community service projects, helped the children work together to come up with an idea for the mural and taught them techniques to use.
Gittelsohn came to the El Toro Center through the funding of the Artists In Residence program through the Arts Council of Silicon Valley.
”This project builds on and enhances the current program goals at El Toro, which are to increase academic success and expose the children to as many different opportunities for development, competency and mastery as possible,” said Ceclia Clark, development and communications manager for Community Solutions.
“Working with a professional artist to access their creativity and express their unique talents has been a powerful experience for the students to help them continue to develop life skills including self-esteem, teamwork, motivation and discipline.”
Lori Escobar, executive director of the El Toro Youth Center, agreed that the opportunity to work with a professional artist was an excellent experience for the kids, but she also pointed out that doing something for someone else – the patients, employees and volunteers at Community Solutions who will enjoy the mural – is also a powerful experience.
“To have the feeling that they have contributed something, to have made someone’s life a little brighter, that is important,” Escobar said. “They listened to Judy’s direction, and then they came to their own decision. They really felt this was their project.”
Lizette said she was glad to be a part of the project and was pleased to learn the mural would hang where many people will see it. Her favorite part, she said, was “when we were blending the colors.”
Maybe there were lessons learned, and not just about art.
Escobar and Clark said one of the students who participated, Leonardo Cortez had a “mature” reaction to some of the instructions. Gittelsohn was giving the kids trays of paint to use, cautioning them about spilling the paint, when Cortez said, “That’s all right; getting paint spilled on you builds character.”
The group of kids was selected, Escobar said, were kids who were interested in being involved, kids who have an interest in art, if not skill, and kids who would “stay on target” and appreciate they were doing something for the community.
“I think this project is special because we serve the community, we are a center for the community, these kids are part of the community, and they created this work of art for our center, therefore for the community,” said Perla Flores, assistant director of Solutions for Violence, part of Community Solutions.
The future location of the mural in Community Solutions is something the kids who participated can feel good about, Clark said.
“One of the neat and important pieces of the project is that the mural will be hung on the wall outside the therapy rooms at the Community Solutions Morgan Hill office,” Clark said. “Currently the walls are stark white and not too inviting – the mural will definitely enhance and beautify the client area and make it more welcoming and calming.
“The adults and children clients we see at the MH site are often dealing with traumatic issues in their lives. So anything we can do to make the environment more welcoming and less institutional is of value.”
Marilyn Dubil covers education and law enforcement for The Times. She can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or phoning (408) 779-4106, ext. 202.
