Everyone has the chance to leave their mark in the world.
Sophomore Savannah Jarrett makes her mark with her artistic ability. This spring she will be painting a mural in the school library.
“Basically, the mural shows all the things Puyallup has to offer. PHS is in the center with attractions, such as the Extreme Scream and Meeker Mansion, on both sides,” Jarrett said.
The mural will be about 16 feet long.
“The mural resembles a vintage postcard with a nostalgic feel. The words ‘Puyallup High’ will be in the center,” Jarrett said.
When librarian Beth Watts first came to PHS, she discovered the empty wall where the mural will be located.
“When I came here four years ago, the library was so cluttered. It had extra bookshelves, it had so much clutter, so the first thing we did was de-clutter,” Watts said. “Then in the process I opened up that big wall and it was the first wall the people saw as they came through the library. At that time I thought that we needed student art there.”
While the plans never came further than that four years ago, they are rolling now.
“When art teacher Dorrie Coleman came on staff, she and Mr. Smith mentioned the possibility of a mural and I’ll admit, it made me a little nervous. I thought, okay, who’s going to get the final say on what this mural looks like? Will it be really bizarre? But I’m really pleased with the concept,” Watts said.
Coleman was asked to choose a student to paint the mural by Principal Jason Smith.
“Mr. Smith came to me about a year ago and he was really hoping [last spring] to get a mural done for the library but things got weird and so it never really came to fruition,” Coleman said.
Coleman chose Jarrett after very little thought due to her artistic ability.
“This year Mr. Smith came and asked again. I told him, ‘I do have a student that is really talented, who I really think would enjoy the project and it would really be good for her to get a mark made in school.’
That’s how I came up with Savannah,” Coleman said.
Even though the plan is finalized, it will take some time for the mural to be up on the wall.
“My goal is to have it done by the end of May. There are a lot of steps to doing the mural. There’s the planning which we just completed, there’s getting the drawing of the painting up on the wall, masking everything up, priming the wall and then the painting can begin. That’s going to take a lot of time,” Coleman said.
The talk of a new mural brings excitement and hope for a more welcoming atmosphere.
“PHS is a pivotal part of Puyallup. I like the idea that the library is the heart of PHS and it being a place where students can come before school, after school— anytime they need to— to find a nice place to work but I want it to be attractive too,” Watts said.
