Mural celebration is Aug. 26

Doña Ana County Resilience Leaders (DACRL) in collaboration with Lift Up Las Cruces will celebrate the completion of a community-created mural, 4-5 p.m., Friday, Aug. 26.

The mural is on the Cravings Catering building at the corner of Solano Drive and Mulberry Avenue, according to a DACRL news release. The wall space was donated by Samantha Ward.

“The mural depicts what our community would be like if we had 100 percent of our survival and thriving services to not only survive but to flourish,” the news release said. “It incorporated the importance of culture, diversity, education and family.

“This mural tells a story of an ambitious child that makes education a priority when she is supported by her family,” said Raquel Madrigal, the artist who created the mural. “I chose education to be the end of the narrative because it can pull people out of socio-economical disadvantages and give them a better life. This is an important narrative in New Mexico because we are one of the poorest states, but we still can provide paths to obtaining a degree for those who cannot afford it.

“I pull from this narrative personally because I come from a single parent home and was still able to achieve a bachelor’s in fine arts (degree) and pursue my dreams of being an artist,” Madrigal said. “The mural can be interactive by pretending to take a seat near the face of the graduate on the tree swing. This gives the viewer the ability to imagine themselves within the narrative of Family Roots.”

DARL was established by Las Cruces Mayor Pro Tempore Kasandra Gandara in 2017 “to prevent adverse childhood experiences, family trauma and social adversity by working to ensure all county residents have access to vital services for surviving and thriving,” the news release said.

For more information, text 575-640-6344 and 575-36-4075. Visit www.dacrl.org, and @dacresilenceleaders. Find them on Instagram at donaana4resilience_leaders1 and on Twitter @resiliencelead1. Also visit www.lascrucescateringservices.com.