Kathleen DeSchepper looked at the new murals inside the Park Vista Retirement Living – North Hill facility in East Moline. She loved what she saw.
The 29-year-old Denver, Colorado, woman saw images of local business, such as Whitey’s Ice Cream and Lagomarcino’s. And she saw scenes from a flower market and an American Gothic-style landscape.
“I think it’s wonderful. All of this brought a tear to my eyes,” said Ms. DeSchepper, who was visiting her grandfather at Park Vista and happened to come across a celebration on Friday, Sept. 29, that centered on the new murals. “I really like what they’ve done here.”
Hundreds of people shared that view as they looked over the new art – and many other new features – at the Park Vista facility at 1451 20th Ave., East Moline.
The murals and other updates are part of a two-phase remodel project of the Memory Care portion of Park Vista. The mural part of the remodel will cost about $25,000. The second phase of the updates, which will concentrate on opening up the commons area in the Memory Care section, will cost about $250,000 and is scheduled to be done early next year, according to Julie Lonergan, CEO of Park Vista Senior Housing Management. Park Vista North Hill is a part of Park Vista Senior Housing Management which serves residents and team members in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa.
“This is going to give our residents a better opportunity to congregate together,” she added during a Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting ceremony at Park Vista.
The event attracted several hundred visitors who wanted to get a look at the updates and learn more about the services offered at Park Vista. (The retirement living facility offers assisted living and independent living options, in addition to its memory care services. The facility has about 250 residents, and 18 residents in memory care, said Ms. Lonergan.)
But on Friday, most of the several hundred visitors to Park Vista North Hill were interested in the 14 large, colorful murals that were on display on the walls of the third floor of the facility. Those murals, which depict a variety of local scenes and scenes from nature, are all meant to help people battling dementia issues. The art is meant to help residents by sparking some fond memories of the community, and getting residents to open up and better communicate.
“Regular engagement … can be helpful in treating memory issues by offering ways to engage all of the senses of our residents and can even show improvement in their symptoms and how they function on a daily basis,” Park Vista said.
Ms. Lonergan put the motivation behind the mural project this way: “They (the residents) deserve to have art brought to them.”
Here is a mural artwork and features in the first phase of the project:
- There are 14 large-scale murals that have been completed or are in the works. Many of them are called “Legacy Landmarks” and feature local scenes and businesses. They include Vander Veer Park, Whitey’s, Maid-Rite and Von Maur. (A mural of United Township High School is still in the works.) There are rural landscapes such as a bison scene, harvest, flowers and the “Field of Dreams” baseball field.
- The art was created by local artists Atlanta Dawn, Sarah Jean Robb, Heidi Sallows, Doug Rasmussen, Eve Van Kampen and Andrea “Andy” Wesa, who is also activities director at Park Vista.
- Many of the murals are accompanied by panels that offer information on the artwork. For instance, one of the murals shows a scene from Whitey’s Ice Cream. Near that artwork is a panel that tells some of the history of that business.
- In addition to the artwork, the third floor of the facility features a series of “sensory stations” that are also meant to trigger positive memories and offer chances for residents to strike up conversations. Some of these stations include tables or small sections of a room that resemble a flower shop, tool table, and a clothing and hat display. “Being able to interact with these objects can help those with Alzheimer’s or dementia connect with the world because these items can trigger positive thoughts, memories or feelings, allowing them to express themselves that they might not otherwise be able to do,” according to Park Vista.
Those “sensory stations” and murals are already having a positive impact on residents.
Ms. Wesa said she witnessed some of those positive interactions with residents when she was painting a mural depicting a Maid-Rite scene.
“One of the residents looked (the mural) over and said to me ‘We never drove past a Maid-Rite. We always had to go in.’ … There are so many levels of good this will bring. I couldn’t be more pleased,” she added.
Ms. Wesa said that other residents have looked at the Whitey’s painting and told her stories how they used to live near the ice cream shop or how they always enjoyed getting ice cream treats from the business.
On Friday, when one resident appeared to be fascinated by the Vander Veer Park mural, Ms. Wesa struck up a conversation about the many tulips that are in the artwork. “Do you know how many tulips are (in this mural)? Can you believe I had to paint 72 tulips?” she added.
After looking over the tulips and other artwork on display at Park Vista on Friday, Ms. DeSchepper said she hopes other facilities around the country will take on similar projects.
“What has happened here is great. … I hope murals will be created at other care centers,” he added.
