Painting Westdene beautiful
On one Saturday morning residents of the Westdene community stepped out of their homes to add to the beauty in their neighbourhood.
Who said the winter season is all about darker colours? For residents of Westdene the brighter, the better!
Inspired by the Westdene beauty group, local restaurant Emzini hosted a ‘paint the park’ initiative that saw community members step out of their homes and onto the streets to beautify their neighbourhood.
Richard Griffin, creative director of the restaurant, said the aim of the day was to paint benches and the likes that were around the Westdene Dam. Regular clean-ups of the park are held and this day was in an effort to add to work done by the community members already. “The target for Mandela Month is to get the park safe, secure and clean so we can reintroduce families into this beautiful space.”
Families did certainly step out – as apart from the bold colours one could see stretching around the park, one could also hear the joyful laughter of children as they painted the structures around their neighbourhood.
Griffin said this day was just the foundation of what they really want to do with the park, as they want to convert it back into a public space that helps generate revenue for entrepreneurship, skills development and predominantly for the arts and creative sector. He thinks Westdene is a huge part of the arts community. “The foundations of this community is one that is based in the creative sector, there are journalists, copywriters, set builders and the likes.”
Adding this a community that cares and that is a big thing. Griffin also noted how they started the restaurant as a means to create a space where the community can gather together so to break down the ‘them and us’ conversations that tend to weaken communities.
One community member, Mlungisi Dube, said he believes in giving back to the community and coming out that day was just one of the ways he does his part. “Giving back to the community is like showing appreciation for what it has to offer and such days are a way of getting to know each other as this helps with security.”
Some of the paint used on the day was donated by Jacks Paint Melville.
Related articles:
Building a tactical approach to life at Marks Park Sports Club
