Pictured are business leaders and community members with the artist and the new mural in Mechanicsburg.
Photo by Alixandria Wells-Good
By Alixandria Wells-Good
Contributing writer
MECHANICSBURG – On Monday, Aug. 19, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held in honor of the mural recently completed at the center of the Village of Mechanicsburg at 7 North Main Street.
The Champaign County Chamber of Commerce thanked the community members and businesses that came together to sponsor the mural. The project sponsors include Mixin’s and Fixin’s Country Diner, Hemisphere Coffee Roasters, Darby Dental Smiles, BLU Pest Solutions, Memorial Health, MIXX 165, Dave Kehl Chevrolet, Weidmann Electrical Technology, Simple Coffee Co, Mechanicsburg Sand and Gravel, Tim’s Towing & Auto Recovery, Goshen Lanes/Pizza Alley, Park National Bank, Wren Farm, Richwood Bank and Todd and Amy Boeck.
The chamber of commerce shared that the mural project was spearheaded by recent graduates of the Leadership Champaign County class Alisha Hunter from Memorial Health and Lindsay Cushman from Richwood Bank. Leadership Champaign County is “a community development program in which participants with diverse backgrounds and experiences will have the opportunity to broaden their perspectives, enhance their leadership skills and learn from others who are active in our community.”
Alison Maxurkiewicz of AC Artistry is the artist behind the approximately 23-foot-wide by 18-foot-tall mural. She says the design for the mural was “largely driven by Lindsay Cushman.” Maxurkiewicz went on to share, “She really wanted the design to be something that represented Mechanicsburg well and brought in its history. The hope is that people will take photos with the postcard-like design and share them online. With how social media has taken over in recent years, photo op art is an amazing tool to advertise businesses and bring extra eyes and attention to cities and towns.”
Maxurkiewicz, who works full time as an X-ray tech at Dayton Children’s Hospital, has lived in Urbana for approximately two years with her husband. She says that she’s always had a love of art, but started painting largescale murals about five years ago.
Maxurkiewicz, who grew up near West Chester, shared that in the beginning of her art career, she mainly did commission work on canvases, but eventually wondered what she could do on a larger scale, “maybe on a wall!” she said.
Maxurkiewicz went on to say, “I reached out to a newly-built, indoor/outdoor mall, Liberty Center, about doing a low-cost mural to help get me started and they took me up on my offer! Liberty Center had a monumental impact on me starting my mural business. They really encouraged me to have creative freedom and I ended up creating several murals in their spaces. I fell in love the first time I painted large-scale and I haven’t stopped since. Word of mouth has been a huge factor in helping me continue to do more projects. “
Mechanicsburg Mayor Jason Adelsberger said: “We are so grateful they decided to undertake this project. It adds so much to our downtown and the pride we have in our village.”
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