A Ben’s Bells mural was recently installed near the entrance of Newtown Middle School.

As grouting work was underway on October 21, NMS PTA President Melissa Beylouni and former NMS PTA member and current Hawley Elementary School PTA President Kristen Bonacci explained that the fundraising efforts on the mural began a couple school years ago.

Then on February 28 of the 2019-20 school year, as reported by The Newtown Bee at the time, tile work finally began. Representatives from Ben’s Bells Project Connecticut in Bethel visited the school to oversee the start of the mural work. Volunteers worked with students and school community members to create tiles.

The pandemic soon put a pause on the effort, and Beylouni said once the Ben’s Bells Project Connecticut studio in Bethel was open for limited groups, parent volunteers signed up to visit and paint all of the more than 250 tiles created last school year.

NMS is the final public school in Newtown to install a Ben’s Bells mural. The green mural, shaped like the logo for Ben’s Bells, reads “Newtown Middle School. be kind.”

NMS Principal Tom Einhorn said the mural installation was “a long time coming,” and he thanked the school’s PTA and student council for fundraising and making the mural possible.

Regional manager for Ben’s Bells Project Connecticut Cody Foss, who helped oversee the grout work on October 21 with Ben’s Bells volunteer Barbara Waters and Ben’s Bells Project Connecticut board of directors member Jennifer Avari, acknowledged the work of the NMS PTA and Ben’s Bells volunteers for making the mural possible. According to Foss, along with Waters and Avari, other members of the Ben’s Bells team who contributed to the mural’s creation are Theresa Kelly, Jenn Lawlor, Beth Krueger, and Meri Rosenthal. He also said Jane Adams helped with many stages of the project.

“This group worked together with the NMS PTA and NMS staff to create this beautiful and impactful community message at a most needed time,” Foss said in an e-mail after the installation. “...In all, this mural was a true community project, from the students making and painting the tiles, to Principal Tom Einhorn installing letters, to the custodians and security who helped us set up, to our amazing parents, teachers, and police that all had a hand in creating this universal symbol of kindness that will serve as a reminder of how we should all treat each other for generations to come.”