Volunteer's skills shine light on veterans with repainting of military mural in Verona

A project expected to cost Verona at least $10,000 ended up being free thanks to community donations and the efforts of two volunteer painters.

Verona Council Vice President Trish Hredzak attributed the borough’s good fortune to “the magic of living in a small town.”

Verona’s doughboy memorial has been at the corner of Allegheny River Boulevard and Seldon Avenue since the 1950s. In tandem with the memorial, a mural was painted nearby on the steps that connect Seldon Avenue and High Street.

The three-wall art piece depicts an American flag, a bald eagle and four members of the military representing the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps.

The mural has been a part of the memorial for years and has been updated only a few times in its life span. Hredzak said it was becoming a sore spot for her because she lives near the mural and saw firsthand how the walls and paint were beginning to deteriorate from the elements.

Borough officials had multiple conversations about what restoring the mural might entail, with costs predicted to hit somewhere between $10,000 and $20,000. Council was prepared to table the restoration when a local painter, Timothy Lind, volunteered to do the job for free.

“Things just kind of fell into place,” Hredzak said.

Lind, who has experience painting theater sets, decided to try his hand at painting on a larger scale.

He recently moved to Oakmont and lives next to a friend of Hredzak. The neighbor, told Lind about the mural and suggested he be the one to fix it up.

“I went and took a look at it, and I thought, ‘Yeah, we can do this,’ ” Lind said. “I’ve done very, very modest theater projects where I did some help painting set designs. I thought I could work on a larger scale.”

Lind reached out to Hredzak and gave a presentation before council to get official approval. After his decision to donate his time and skills, other community members began making donations for supplies.

Borough Manager Stefanie Woolford said the wall was cleaned before work began. Lind said the cracks and holes in the cement were filled for him before he began painting. Unfortunately, the cleaning and repairs erased most of the original painting.

“We had to really puzzle it all together,” Lind said. “We took our time and got the paints. We came back every three to four days to continue.”

Lind said he and his fiancee, Ann Scully, began the painting right after Memorial Day and finished July 2. They received community support through donations and supportive words from residents.

“While we were working, people would honk and wave and yell, ‘Good job,’ ” Lind said.

Lind enjoyed branching out from his comfort zone with the project. He described the unique mural as a puzzle that he and Scully got to edit and correct to make everything fit.

“The scale of (the canvas) was fun and making the three walls work together,” Lind said. “The design had already been laid out but tweaking it was fun.”

Woolford said borough officials consistently try to honor veterans with different public displays, including the mural, the doughboy memorial and banners displayed throughout the town. She said the goal is to ensure servicemen and women feel recognized and appreciated.

“It’s pretty much a tribute to all of the Army, Navy, Marines — a tribute to every man and woman who served during wartime and peacetime,” Verona Mayor David Ricupero said. “We’re very grateful to (Lind) and his fiancée.”