Survivors of the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland were joined by alumni and community members Saturday for restoration work on a memorial mural in Wilton Manors.
Completed in 2019, the mural, tucked behind Lola's Market off of NE 13th Avenue, paid tribute to the 17 students and staff who lost their lives when a teen gunman opened fire inside the school nearly six years ago.
"There might be some trauma that may still be apparent, but this is helping them make it beautiful," lead volunteer Renata Cuellar, a 2003 alumna of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, told NBC6. "It's important to have it at a state where it's welcoming for families, friends to come here and pay their respects."
On Saturday, volunteers worked to touch up weathered paint, add plants and soil, and fix the rock gardens. One rock garden served as an additional memorial to those who lost their lives in the Feb. 2018 shooting, while another served as a sort of library, where visitors could decorate a rock of their own and leave it behind in exchange for taking one that had already been placed there.
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"It used to just be the mural. So, now that we have the rocks and the garden, it's all coming together to create a beautiful scene," survivor Sara Giovanello said. "I think that everybody's going to be really amazed by the end product."
Giovanello was one of the original students who contributed to the mural. She returned Saturday as the lead painter on-site, having since earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
"We had a creative outlet to not only get out our feelings, but [also] to represent what we're from," she said. "It's scary, especially as a 16-year-old. But now, I'm turning 23, and I'm here with my friends that have stuck with me for that long, and I'm here with a community of other people who feel the exact same way, and that's really special to me. Those good feelings, definitely, I let them overtake the bad ones because that keeps me going."
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But the future of the tribute mural has been uncertain, after the land on which it was created was purchased with the intent of creating apartments.
"We're going to continue to fight for this mural because it means so much for us," therapist and mural founder Dr. Julio Busciolano said. "It's a place for peace, too, and we're just hoping that we can continue with this."
