Canandaigua firehouse to serve as young artists' canvas
- paintsandrecs
- Jan 3
- 2 min read
Canandaigua Fire Chief Frank Magnera, who has seen some preliminary sketches, said he is looking forward to seeing what the kids come up with and in turn, firefighters will be providing them with lessons on fire prevention.
“Hopefully, this showcases our history and dresses up the front of the building and makes it more attractive,” Magnera said. “I think it’s a good program. They’ve done a nice job from what I’ve seen before in Jefferson Park. We’re happy to have them.”
The program, which filled up soon after registration opened, gets started July 16. The students will work for five weeks, and a community reveal is planned in August when they’re done.
The camp builds on he artistic skills of participants. But it also allows the older kids to build relationships with their youngster counterparts and provides an opportunity to share what they’ve learned, Austin said. The camp also helps students who are transitioning from elementary to middle school, so they get to see some familiar faces when school opens, Austin said.
The program also helps build ownership in the community. Last year, residents living near the park who appreciated what the kids were doing to beautify their neighborhood would bring the kids water bottles and popsicles, Austin said.
"I think they took a lot of pride in creating that space for their community," Austin said of the campers. “We’re all about fire safety so we’re very excited to be in such an amazing area this summer and give a little more color to Main Street,"
Canandaigua Mayor Bob Palumbo, who was a longtime volunteer firefighter, said the kids spruced up the buildings at Jefferson Memorial Park very well. He also likes the emphasis on history and fallen firefighters on this project, “which is pretty cool.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” Palumbo said.
The students will be painting more realistic mural scenes, with some portrait work mixed in, at the firehouse. The project will be reminiscent of the murals students painted at the Cheshire firehouse in the town of Canandaigua, a project that Austin also was involved in through the school district a few summers ago.
“We feel this is just the beginning for these kids,” Austin said. “A lot of people don’t realize the potential they have.”
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