Near the exit of our parking lot is a line of formerly plain concrete "jersey" barriers. They now mark the property line with style thanks to the efforts of painters from our community! Throughout the month of May, the artists painted their colorful designs onto the barriers, each interpreting the Summer Learning Program theme, "Adventure Begins at Your Library," in a unique way. Enjoy the barriers as you exit the library each time you visit, and learn more about the artists and their designs on this page.

This is the fourth year we have done this project. Take a look at the designs from 2021, 2022, and 2023!

The designs, images, and ideas reflected in this art are solely those of the individual artists. 

Erica Hardy-Abreu: Barrier 1 (next to the stop sign)
Bio: No matter the medium, when Erica creates a piece, she likes to explore the relationship between Art and Story. In a world that feels very divisive, stories and art connect us to our communities and to each other. The projects she is most passionate about allow her to explore this connection while amplifying marginalized voices and experiences. With a background in film and animation, as well as traditional art, her work is bright, approachable, and easy to visually read. Design:Inspired by her own lifetime of library adventures (and now as a parent of a library lover) Erica wants to show how the theme “adventure starts at your library” manifests not only through reading, but through the many programs and services offered by libraries. Erica divided the barrier into four brightly-painted panels differentiated by color. Each contains the silhouette of a sister and brother and shows a phase of their life growing up at their local library. Panel one focuses on baby and young childhood, reading/playing with a parent. Panel two focuses on the elementary school years and the excitement of getting your first library card. In panel three, the teen years focus on the social aspects of the library. Finally in panel four see the siblings as adults still finding fun and adventure at the library.

Bonnie Carrow with the Harrisburg Palestine Coalition: Barrier 2
Bio: Bonnie Carrow is an artist, educator, and curator. She earned a Master of Fine Art from University of South Florida and a Bachelor of Fine Art from Millersville University. Her work has been exhibited both regionally and internationally and has been featured in multiple publications including Xin Sai Magazine, Vox Populi's Juried Publication, and Creative Quarterly. She has been awarded residencies at the Icelandic Textile Center in Blonduos, Iceland, and Hotel Pupik in Sheifling, Austria.  Design: This mural design reflects the power of literature to show us how to build new worlds. Adventure starts at the library because libraries offer access to writings that teach us the vocabulary of liberation and pathways to create collective futures. Inspired by If I Must Die, a poem by Palestinian writer Rafaat Alareer, this design uses kites as a symbol of hope, freedom, and the beauty of Palestine and its people. Each kite is adorned with a symbol of Palestinian art, culture, or landscape. Harrisburg Palestine Coalition members to paint the background and outlines of the design. Children painted the kites alongside their parents to represent the beauty of Palestine and their visions of liberation for our Palestinian neighbors, both near and far. This mural is part of a movement to create space for children to commune during a time of fear and confusion.

Julie Rodgers: Barrier 3
Bio: Julie Rodgers retired after 37 years in education. Twelve of those years were spent developing a program for and teaching elementary art at Heritage Christian Academy in Mechanicsburg. She is still occasionally asked to substitute. Julie has always enjoyed using creativity in a variety of mediums, especially sewing and crafting for family and friends. Painting is a relatively new medium for Julie. When not crafting, gardening, and painting, Julie enjoys spending time with her husband and two young grandchildren. Design: Julie’s family traveled up and down the eastern seaboard when she was young. The family of six packed into their 60s style station wagon towing a homemade luggage trailer on their trips from Niagara Falls to Cape Canaveral. Julie’s love for adventure was lived out through those camping trips. Her own children loved taking some of those same trips via books that they found at the library. Now that they are grown-up, they are taking their own children to the library. Julie’s design of bookshelves, people reading, and interesting destinations is intended to illustrate that reading, a love for books, and visits to the library can most certainly lead to adventures of all sorts—whether real or imagined.

Spencer Davis: Barrier 4
Bio: Spencer Davis took classes in art and graphic design in high school and continued art as a hobby in college. Nowadays, Spencer typically does art for fun or through commissions. While he prefers digital art for convenience, he is no stranger to paints having painted sets for plays and musicals in high school in addition to painting gifts for friends over the past few years. As someone familiar with image readability from a multitude of distances and angles, Spencer’s design is spatially organized to be enjoyed from a distance while honing the skill necessary to make the image look clean from a closer angle. Design: Spencer has always loved the idea of an adventure. His own idealized childhood adventure is displayed here, depicting four traveling friends approaching the sunset on their way to a rendering of our own Simpson Library, the fourth traveler being the viewer. On the left of the design is a first-person perspective of the scene, with the viewer holding the map in a book. The other three friends beckon the audience to join them on their quest. Because of Spencer’s undying love for the Redwall and Swordbird series, he depicted the adventurers as fun animal people inviting the human viewer into their world. Look closely and you’ll see that the wizard has a library card in her staff’s orb.
 

Cecilia Coronado: Barrier 5
Bio: Cecilia is the facilities manager at Simpson Public Library. A native of California, she served 22 years in the Army, retiring in Mechanicsburg in 2019. Not someone to sit still, Cecilia has almost finished her Masters Degree in Social Work. When she’s not studying or working, she enjoys spending time with her daughters and grandchildren. Design: Cecilia’s colorful design depicts a child reading an adventure story about the Lost City of Atlantis. The book comes to life as we see two children discovering Atlantis as the story is read. 

Claire Bailets: Barrier 6
Bio: Claire Bailets is a Mechanicsburg native and a graduate of Gettysburg College. In high school, she took classes in film photography, won several awards and had her work featured in art shows within the school district. Though she didn’t continue film photography in college, she often used her digital camera to capture moments with friends on campus and when she studied abroad for a semester in Germany. She considers her German studies degree from Gettysburg as one of her biggest achievements. She wrote her senior thesis in German and became fluent in the language. It gave her not only treasured friends and mentors, but also exposure to the art, literature, and cultural history of the country she has grown to love after living there. Through her studies and travels around the world since graduation, she has continued to be an avid amateur photographer, and delights in capturing memories with friends and family. Design: As an avid reader throughout her life, Claire considers books to be the best adventure you can go on without leaving home. Binoculars were chosen to be the focal point of the design. They are showing a jungle that is waiting to be explored. Jungles remind Claire of explorers and adventurers. The binoculars are resting on top of a book to represent the summer learning program. Every book can be an adventure! 

Katlyn Baer and Green Ridge Elementary School Fifth Grade Students: Barrier 7
Bio: With a passion for working with young artists, Katlyn Baer fosters a hands-on approach in the classroom, encouraging students to explore various mediums and embrace the artistic process. Ms. Baer is dedicated to community-based projects, particularly mural work, as a means of showcasing her students' talents to the wider community and providing enriching opportunities to work collaboratively. Her belief in the power of working together drives her enthusiasm for creating shared canvases that reflect the unique imagination and expression of each student. It is her belief that an artistic outlet is vital to the overall wellbeing of our lives. Through engaging in creation, students not only develop artistic skills but also universal qualities that help them in all areas of life including persistence, leadership, collaboration, creative thinking, and problem solving, as well as agency, self-discovery, and self-expression. Beyond the classroom walls, Katlyn explores her own creativity with clay, stained glass, and mural work. Design: Green Ridge Elementary fifth grade students worked collaboratively to complete their mural design in connection with the Summer Learning Program theme, “Adventure Begins at Your Library”. The students had a variety of ideas for the painting. The final design melds all these different ideas together into one. Two children are seen reading by flashlight in a blanket fort as their stories come to life around them. Highlights include a space expedition to the moon, a castle guarded by a dragon, a hot air balloon ode to Dr. Seuss’s Oh the Places You’ll Go, and sailors traveling treacherous seas guided by a mermaid. The Green Ridge Gator mascot, Gilligan, also makes his appearance in stuffed animal form, listening to the children as they read.

Corinne Roller and Mallory Shelley: Barrier 8
Bio: Corinne Roller just finished sixth grade at the Mechanicsburg Middle School. She loves to draw, go snowboarding, and hang out with her friends. She loves playing with her baby brother. Corinne also loves to draw and is developing her talent for art. Mallory Shelley, a local artist residing in the Borough of Mechanicsburg, works at The Smith Gallery & Fine Custom Framing in New Cumberland, PA. She specializes in figurative drawing and acrylic painting. She is always curious to learn new techniques and experiment with assorted mediums. Mallory is mostly self-taught; however, she did attend Pratt Institute for a year. Observing the work of Salvador Dalí, Claes Oldenburg, and M.C. Escher are what inspired her to think outside of the box. Art world aside, she has a dedicated family (partner and two children) and a pug to love. She also enjoys running, playing puzzle and board games, researching Mid-Century Modern design, and spending time outdoors. This is Mallory’s third year participating in the Beautify the Barriers Art Project, and she’s excited to be painting with her daughter, Corinne. Design: Sit down, buckle up, and enjoy the read! Corinne’s and Mallory’s design depicts an open book on a roller coaster, symbolizing the adventurous twists and turns to be found in a book!

Emilee Mehr and Rachel Mehr: Barrier 9
Bio: Emilee Mehr just finished ninth grade at Cumberland Valley Ninth Grade Academy and has taken art class from Kindergarten through eighth grade. Despite not being able to take an art class this year, Emilee continues to draw paint, and create on her own. She painted one of the barriers last year with her family, and they all enjoyed it. Emilee believes that art in any of its forms is a beautiful way to express thought and feelings. She also plays an instrument, sings, dances, writes, dreams, colors, draws, and imagines in her free time. She has also recently taken an interest in digital art and AI generating art methods. Rachel Mehr just finished fifth grade at Silver Spring Elementary School and has taken art classes since Kindergarten. She has always expressed a great interest in art and helped her mom and Emilee paint a barrier last year. In her free time, Rachel loves to draw, color, paint, sew, and work on her latest craft project. This year in art class, she developed a love for sculpting and has continued to practice it at home. The sisters’ mom and other family members helped out as well. Design: Emilee’s and Rachel’s design features a pirate ship named The Jolly Reader and a family car approaching the library which is full of books bursting with adventures! Their painting shows that the next book you get from the library can take you on an adventure and that just going to the library is an adventure in its own right.

Gabrielle Sheibley, Sriya D., and Tara Sheibley: Barrier 10
Bio: Gabrielle Sheibley just finished fifth grade at PA Cyber school. She enjoys spending her time creating art of all types including hand-made miniature saddles, drawing, paper quilling, and clay pottery. She also loves spending time learning about all types of animals. In the future, she plans to study to become a veterinarian.
Sriya D. just finished fifth grade at Saint Joseph School. She likes to spend time with her friends. Some of her favorite activities are drawing, reading, and writing stories. She also enjoys learning to play the clarinet, violin, and piano. Tara Sheibley teaches strings at Saint Joseph School and at her private studio in Mechanicsburg. When she is not teaching music, she spends her time with Gabrielle. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, spending time with their dogs and volunteering at a local horse barn.  Design: Their artwork for the theme “Adventure Begins at Your Library,” shows that many different adventures can start at the library. Books are a great way to spark the imagination. Pick up a book and go on an adventure.

Cora Gulde: Barrier 11
Bio: Cora Gulde just finished fourth grade at Elmwood Academy. She loves music, and she plays violin and piano. She auditioned for the American College of Musicians National Piano Playing Auditions and qualified as a District Member of the National Fraternity of Student Musicians. At Elmwood, she plays violin in the Fifth Grade Orchestra as well as the Chamber Ensemble. Cora also loves playing basketball and performs ballet and acro. Cora loves reading and gardening in her spare time. She wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up. Design: Cora invented the Bookerfly, an enchanting creature, much like a butterfly, but in the form of a magical book that springs to life, flapping its pages like wings as it explores the world. These lively creatures embody the spirit of adventure found at the local library. Their appearances are as varied as the stories they contain, and they soar through the imagination’s skies. Accompanied by the adorable Book Bird, another character invented by Cora, the Bookerflies spread knowledge and joy wherever they go. The Book Bird and Bookerflies are reminders of the magic hidden within books, just waiting to be discovered by readers eager for new horizons.
 

Paula Zinobile with Mason and Milo Baublitz: Barrier 12
Bio: Paula Zinobile is an artist, interior designer, and business owner. You can visit her business, Paula Hess Z Studios at the 32nd Street Mercantile in Camp Hill. She was a Pennsylvania State Portfolio winner and the winner of the National Art Scholarship in the Scholastic Art Contest. Paula has had numerous commissioned art pieces. She believes it is very important to get children involved in the arts at an early age and watch their excitement grow. Mason and Milo Baublitz attend Greenridge Elementary School. When they grow up, Mason is interested in masonry and Milo would like to be a video game designer. Design: Mason, Milo, and their little sister, Marilee, have taken a ride on a cloud-powered book to explore an erupting volcano which Milo is pointing to in excitement. They are steering clear of the volcano and heading toward a group of islands that resemble LEGO from the sky. Marilee is clutching her goggles because they are traveling so fast that they have time-traveled back to the Land Before Time. Watch out for the pterodactyl! Mason, Milo, and Marilee have discovered that books can take you anywhere.
 

Special Thanks to:
The Arts for All Partnership, a partnership between the Cultural Enrichment Fund and the Greater Harrisburg Community Foundation, a regional foundation of The Foundation for Enhancing Communities for a grant that helped make this project successful. 

Brian Edmondson, owner of Art Depot in Mechanicsburg, for sponsoring this project and offering a discount to the painters.

Additional Thanks to:
Andrew Hayter for taking photos of the painted barriers and the artists to display in the library.

Brian Gross for allowing his jersey barriers to be painted and straightening one of the barriers so that it could be used.

Boy Scout Troop 55, Lemoyne for cleaning up weeds around the barriers in Spring 2024.

Trent Mellott for painting the white base coat on the barriers.

Lawrence Chevrolet for donating bottled water for the reception on June 9.