Gratitude for a Dream Come True

“Representing the past, present, and future of the Pigeon Community Multicultural Development Center with a beautiful work of public art is truly a dream come true! A project of this scope really does take a village, and we are so grateful to all the people and organizations who made this happen, from the Center’s staff and board members to the community members who contributed their memories and ideas, the organizations who funded the project, and to the artists who created a work that will inspire us for decades to come.”

Lin Forney, Executive Director, Pigeon Community Multicultural Development Center 

Painting Our Dreams: The Stories Behind the PCMDC Mural

“When the Waynesville Public Arts Commission asked us what we wanted, we came up with the theme ‘The Past, Present, and Future of the Pigeon Center.’ The ideas came directly from the community at large, the Pigeon Center staff and board, those who had gone to school in this building and in the Rosenwald school. This concept is all of those voices, thoughts, and ideas.”

Lin Forney, July 10, 2024

The Meanings Behind the Mural

The corner section represents the past. The three adults are the Pigeon Street School’s original teachers. From left to right are Miss Elsie Osborne, the school’s principal who taught 3rd and 4th grades, Mr. James Bryant, who taught 5th and 6th grades, and Mrs. Marion K. Howell, who taught kindergarten through 2nd grades.

The black and white triangles represent the profound segregation—not just in schools but throughout the community—that existed when the Pigeon Street School opened in 1957. The other background motif is a traditional Cherokee basketweave pattern to acknowledge that this is indigenous Cherokee land. The two-story brick building was the old Rosenwald School, located across Oakdale Street. The children dancing around the Maypole was a fondly remembered seasonal tradition for the school’s students. Beneath that, the spire of the nearby Jones Temple AME Zion Church rises over Gent’s Drive-In Café, a popular “juke joint” with food, music, dancing and pool tables. A 1952 DeSoto is parked out front. Backdropped by a red velvet curtain, three students are all dressed up for a school play. Left to right they are Ionita Howell, Gregory Wheeler, and Beryl Lenoir. Today, Mr. Wheeler continues his early connection with the space as a PCMDC board member.

“I’ve been here 20-plus years, and I also went to school here. As I come into the building I always remember when it was the school. I hear the voices of the teachers and see my little classmates. To be able to see that for real, live and in color, is absolutely amazing.”

Lin Forney, Smoky Mountain News, July 3, 2024.

“We put the Babb & Craven Street sign on the corner because generations stood and played and gathered under it. My family used that space for family reunions my whole life.”

Tausha Forney, July 10, 2024

The Cherokee motif continues and is joined by the Smoky Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains. Images of native plants are used throughout, and a pigeon in flight reflects the name of the community, the school, and the Center. The present is represented by a stack of books near a woman reading to a child, showing our love of intergenerational learning. We serve people of all ages, and we work to make sure that everyone is cared for from the beginning to the end. Behind them, a gold medallion depicts PCMDC’s logo, a pair of conjoined Siamese crocodiles embodying the Center’s core values of interdependence and cooperation among all people despite cultural differences. It symbolizes working together in a democratic society to reach our destiny as humanity.

In the final section of the mural, three volunteers are shown tending to a community garden while a group of children gather in the background, representing the future of the community. Two things that we’ve always done here are feeding people and taking care of kids. The children anchor our program and are the future of the community, the space, and the neighborhood. The color blocks painted by community members show that together we’ve moved from black and white all the way to a beautiful geometric multicultural rainbow that ties everything together and continues into the future.

Special Thanks to the Artists: 

Kristy McCarthy, Muralist 

Michael Mitchell, Assistant Muralist

Jerel Tavares, WCU Intern 

Miguel Antonio Perez, WCU Intern

Painters: Pam Anderson, Tausha Forney, Gregory Wheeler, Lin Forney, Carolyn Wallace, Pigeon Community Members

Special Thanks to the Funders:

Haywood County Arts Council

Haywood County Tourism Development Authority

Special Funding by Waynesville Public Art Commission

Special Thanks to Focus Group Participants:

Michael Bryson, Tausha Forney, Carolyn Wallace, Walter Bryson, Phillip Gibbs, Gregory Wheeler,

Janie Carson, JoAnn Howell, Deborah Cullins, Alice Lawry