Like the mythical phoenix rising from the ashes to symbolize rebirth and resilience, a group of community leaders hopes for the same for an area of town that has seen its share of malice.
Over the past couple of years, the walls of the Wayland Community Pool have been the site of hate with racial and antisemitic graffiti. The latest was a swastika painted on a wall in March 2025.
For the past year, members of the Wayland Community Pool; WaylandCAN; Arts Wayland; the Wayland Human Rights, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee; Wayland High School students and staff; residents; and faith-based partners have been meeting to discuss having a mural painted on the wall.
“The project really grew out of the community coming together rather than any one organization or person,” said Heidi Heilman, a resident who has helped spearhead the initiative. “After the hateful graffiti incidents, students and residents raised the idea of a mural. We felt it was time to come together to transform the pool wall in a way that truly reflects the true values of Wayland.”
The planning and fundraising stages are ramping up with the goal of having the mural completed by the end of the school year. To gather the town’s feelings on what should be included in the mural, a survey, open to anyone interested in adding their thoughts, will run through the end of March. The anonymous three-question survey is the same one that generated about 50 responses last year. The group is hoping for more involvement this time around.
The survey will be sent out through the community organizations’ email lists and is available on the Wayland Community Facebook page. Residents can also reach out to one of the organizations to have it sent to them.
One thing that is definitely in place is the artist who will transform the wall into a place of beauty instead of hate. Wayland High School alum Lena McCarthy is a professional mural artist and has agreed to return to her hometown to add something everyone can be proud of.
“We were super excited that Lena could do it,” Heilman said. “The story of the wall is extremely compelling. And it deepens the richness of this whole process by having a Wayland student coming back.”
McCarthy’s work can be seen in Chestnut Hill and Providence, as well as internationally in Mexico, India, Colombia, and Ireland.
“This isn’t just a community coming together and saying ‘let’s put some art here’,” Heilman said. “It’s a whole process of how we can transform and heal.[The mural] will allow us to heal as a community, show what we value and want, and allow people to feel welcome here and have a sense of belonging.”
Heilman added that the group doesn’t want a couple of incidents to define what people think of Wayland. And since no culprits have been identified, it very well could be one or more non-residents.
“It only takes one person to do a selfless act and not the majority of the town,” she said. “The community is standing up and saying, ‘No more; this is not welcome here and this is not who we are’.”
