Mural artist Katerina Wiley will be honored at St. John

Katerina Wiley, a recent graduate of St. John High School, has been planning on getting the Gold Award, the highest and most prestigious award in Girl Scouting, for years. Kat, as she likes to be called, decided that her project would be painting a mural in the heart of St. Johns to depict scenes that highlight the Palouse region.

Her goal with the 30x70-foot mural on the north-facing exterior wall of St. John Hardware was to pay homage to her heritage while fostering a sense of community now and for future generations. She also hopes to inspire a new generation of artists.

A celebration of the achievement will be Friday, Aug. 24, at St. John Hardware in St. John from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Attendees can wish Kat well before she heads off to attend Lewis & Clark State College in Lewiston.

In addition to painting the mural, she taught art to third, fourth and fifth grade students at St. John and Endicott elementary schools. Twice a week for 10 weeks, Kat taught students the process of creating a mural. Her students painted miniature murals that will be displayed at the dedication of the mural.

Once Kat received permission from St. John Hardware, she secured funding to make the project happen, enlisted the help of several mentors including an artistic director, marketing advisor, financial advisor, teaching advisors, and a general advisor.

As part of the undertaking she removed old nails, power washed and prepped the wall with a coat of white paint giving her a large empty canvas to create her masterpiece.

She also set a budget for the project and developed a marketing plan that included creating a Facebook account where she posted progress of the mural.

It took Kat 15 weeks to finish the mural.

“The hardest part of the project was getting it done before my Girl Scout destination trip to Costa Rica and making time with so much going on,” Kat said. “Between planning, promoting, collecting donations, and actually getting the painting done, I’m proud to say I finished the day before I boarded the plane to Costa Rica!”