CHAT Brings New Welcome Mural to Gulfton Area
NEWS RELEASE
Culture of Health Advancing Together Partners with Community to Bring New Welcome Mural to Gulfton Area
Culture of Health – Advancing Together (CHAT) – a local nonprofit organization in the Gulfton area of Houston – recently partnered with residents of its community to design and bring to life a new welcome mural to the Gulfton area. Gulfton is Houston’s most diverse and international community and often is the first place many new Houstonians call home when they arrive to the city.
The new mural project titled A Children’s Story embraces and celebrates Gulfton’s diversity by visually displaying a colorful message of welcome to all new Houstonians and visitors to the area.
“Houston is home to me, and I wanted to create something that speaks to families like mine, who aren’t from Houston originally, but who have come to love and appreciate all this city has to offer,” said Amy Malkan, the artist commissioned for the project. “Working with CHAT and the Gulfton community to develop this mural has been such a rewarding experience.”
The A Children’s Story mural is located at 6075 Bissonnet Street, Houston, Texas 77081 on the wall of a 98 Cent Plus Store in the community.
“This wall had been a magnet for graffiti, so when the owner of the property and residents around the area became aware of our work in creating other such murals in Gulfton they were very interested in working with us,” said Dr. Aisha Siddiqui, Founding Director at CHAT. “Our hope is that this mural too will be a point of pride for the community where they can feel identified and welcomed. At CHAT this is our main goal – to make people feel welcomed.”
CHAT is a nonprofit organization located in the Gulfton area of Houston dedicated to fostering the health and well-being of immigrant and refugee communities through education, arts, advocacy, and access to care. In 2018, the nonprofit organization partnered with the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs and the Houston Arts Alliance to create a series of 12 murals highlighting the international diversity and cultural history of the Gulfton area. The series titled The Gulfton Story Trail was part of a pilot program ‘Visit My Neighborhood’ embarked under Mayor Sylvester Turner’s Complete Communities Initiative.
In this instance, CHAT has received a grant from the Local Initiative Support Corporation (LISC Houston) to complete this new mural project. LISC Houston is a local office of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, the nation’s largest community development support organization.
However, donations and sponsorships of the A Children’s Story mural are still being accepted.
For information about CHAT and the A Children’s Story mural visit: https://chattx.org/
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About CHAT
CHAT is a 501 (c)3 nonprofit organization located in the Gulfton area of Houston dedicated to fostering the health and well-being of immigrant and refugee communities through education, arts, advocacy, and access to care. With a multifaceted approach targeting the social determinants of health through support, networking, and community engagement, CHAT is able to improve immigrant and refugee health and well-being by reducing isolation, facilitating acculturation, and connecting resources unlike any other existing organization in Houston.