Fellowship Hall at Community Presbyterian Church of Clarendon Hills has been given some new life, thanks to a Hinsdale teen.
Hinsdale Central senior Avery Rigazio created a 20-foot mural that celebrates the history of daisy fields in Clarendon Hills. Her creation was dedicated Sunday at the church, 39 N. Prospect Ave. in an event attended by Rigazio and her family, who are church members, Rigazio’s Hinsdale Central art teacher, Laura Milas and several additional church members.
“It wasn’t exactly an unveiling, and we hadn’t been keeping it hidden, but for the vast majority, this was the first time they had seen the mural,” said Judy Schloegel, church elder. “Everyone was very elated.”
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Schloegel said the mural is a wonderful addition to the church.
“This is our most important social space, and the addition of the mural has made it much more warm and inviting,” she said. Rigazio also led a repainting of Fellowship Hall to go along with the mural.
The creation was the result of several years of planning, fundraising to purchase material and work by Rigazio, who earned the highest award from the Girl Scouts, the Gold Award, for her efforts.
The creation of the daisy field mural allowed Rigazio to combine her talents and interests in philanthropy and art, along with the history of the community. As she considered ideas for her Gold Award project, Rigazio was drawn to her long-standing participation in activities, such as Sunday school, Logos, Vacation Bible School, and youth programs at the church during her childhood. She said the church felt like the right place to do a project.
“I wanted to do something that would benefit the community through art, and I felt that nothing means more to Clarendon Hills than daisies,” Rigazio said. “Clarendon Hills began with an accidental field of daisies, and it’s only appropriate to center the mural on our town’s heritage.”
Rigazio raised approximately $1,000 to fund the effort, which required nearly 1,000 total hours, including fundraising, coordinating efforts and the actual creation of the mural.
Milas designed the original collage that was projected to create the mural. Rigazio’s project also had assistance from Girl Scout troop members Rachel Brugge and Annaka Freve, as well as Rigazio’s parents, Anne and John, and her sister, Abby, a previous Gold Award recipient.
From design to completion, the project involved scraping of layers of old paint, priming, projecting and tracing the mural, planning out the wall painting, and learning how to paint with fine tip brushes while balanced on a ladder and unable to touch the walls.
“The ability to actually do this big of a project and have it mean something means a great deal to me,” said Rigazio, who is a member of Girls Scout Troop 51360 in the Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana Girl Scout service unit.
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.