The freshly created mural board at Hillcrest Business Association (By Benjamin Nicholls)
Community, Hillcrest

Hopes and Wishes

By Frank Sabatini Jr.

The blackboard that spanned across the Alibi’s side wall on Richmond Street in Hillcrest for several years, titled “Before I Die…,” gave the community a chance to write in chalk things they’d like to accomplish or experience before crossing into the afterlife. Sadly, the pandemic prompted its removal as the popular dive bar expanded its outdoor gathering space.

The board has now been revived at a different location, thanks to the Hillcrest Business Association (HBA) and its executive director, Benjamin Nicholls.

With little investment and the support of volunteers from HBA’s beautification committee, a new mural board was created outside the association’s headquarters at 1601 University Ave., along the west side of the building on Herbert Street.

“We first went through a research process and discovered this is an international project, with thousands of mural boards just like this seen around the world,” Nicholls told us.

From the project’s website, Nicholls downloaded the instructional toolkit for constructing the mural. He also made a donation to the cause and then got rolling. (According to the web site, the walls appear in 78 countries and in 35 languages.)

“We followed the stencil from the project’s template and the mural is now up–and it’s already filled with writings,” he added. “It’s really amazing how much people love this thing.”

The creation process, he noted, went smoothly. Spare wood that was already on hand was used, and chalk paint was donated by Hillcrest Brewing Company. Nicholls said the final price tag amounted to about $50.