Downtown Owensboro will soon have a new mural encouraging people to “Be the Change,” with the owners of Hooded Crow chosen to complete the artwork. New Beginnings Sexual Assault Support Services made the announcement Tuesday that the local artists would submit the winning design for the mural that will promote their Green Dot Program.
“Green Dot is a nationally recognized strategy started here in Kentucky that focuses on preventing violence,” officials with New Beginnings said on Facebook. “The strategy is based around the belief that each one of us holds power as bystanders to actively prevent violence and make our community a safe place to live.”
Crystal Dawn, who co-owns the Hooded Crow tattoo shop with her husband Mike White, said they were glad to be a part of the project.
“We just want people to take a stand and do what’s right,” Dawn said. “If you see somebody do something that they’re not supposed to, especially when it involves kids, you definitely need to say something. We’re parents and we just care about the younger kids and the next generation coming up.”
The mural features a lion’s head with the words “Be the Change” to the side. Dawn said it would span about 16 feet or so.
“It takes courage to be the change,” she said. “A lion spiritually represents strength and courage.”
Karla Ward, executive director at New Beginnings, said there were about a dozen submissions for the mural.
“This particular submission seemed to capture exactly what it was that we were looking for,” Ward said. “They even captioned it as ‘Be the change’ and we have that as part of our tagline with Green Dot. They were able to incorporate that into the picture. It just was a good fit for us. We were excited to be able to partner with them. They brought so much creativity to what we were looking for.”
Larry and Rosemary Conder donated the space for the mural, which will be on the east side of the Simply Chic building on 3rd and Allen streets.
“Rosemary and I are honored to help New Beginnings promote awareness of the Green Dot Program to prevent violence,” Larry Conder said. “The historic Inquirer Building is a great choice not just for its location, but because it once housed one of the local news sources. The owner of Simply Chic, Debi Ford, is a huge supporter of Downtown too. The message the lion portrays is significant to show that Owensboroans care and speak out for each other.”
The New Beginnings Facebook post said a Green Dot “is a single choice someone makes to stop a violent situation from occurring or getting worse. It is a behavior, choice or action that promotes safety for everyone. The goal of Green Dots is to let others know that violence will not be tolerated, and everyone is expected to do their part to contribute to fostering a safe community.”
Ward said they are hoping to continue spreading awareness of the Green Dot program.
“Ultimately our goal is to make Owensboro a Green Dot city,” she said. “That means that we have been able to train a certain percentage of people to be able to have gone through this training.”
Dawn said they’ll begin the project Friday and hope to finish it by Oct. 9.
“We’re just really excited to be part of something that’s much bigger than ourselves.”
