Moved by the death of George Floyd and the protests in Raleigh this past weekend, two Cary High School seniors staged an art event in Downtown Cary on Tuesday to share positive messages.

“We came up with the idea to decorate around the fountain with chalk messages of love and support for the people of color in our community,” said Ella Green, 18, who planned the project with her friend Michael Shorb, 17.

The teens and their families reached out to the Cary Police Department, which immediately signed on as a partner. Officers helped the young organizers with logistics, and together, all the participants agreed that the art display would be temporary.

“All of the messages that were written were all in our hearts, and we could take that with us,” Ella Green said. “It really sparked up a lot of conversation while we were there. A lot of people were having conversations about George Floyd’s death and Breonna Taylor’s death, and it was really cool to see.”

She says firefighters from the Cary Fire Department brought out fire hoses, and she and her friends were the ones to wash away their own artwork.

While the drawings were on the ground for only a few hours, photos of the project were shared widely on social media, sparking more discussion.

“We have seen that art can help heal, and the passion and talent shown by these amazing kids had an impact on so many,” wrote Lori Bush, a Cary council member, in a Facebook post.

The town also arranged for a drone to fly over Downtown Park in order to capture the images, she said.

The Cary Police Department added in a separate Facebook post: “Cary High School seniors reached out to team up with Cary Police for a two-hour ‘Decorate the Fountain’ chalk event and provide a group of students a safe space to express their feelings about recent events. What happened at the Downtown Park today was a cathartic shared experience that will live on in our hearts beyond the pavement that served as our canvas.”

Bill Green, Ella’s father, says his family has had many conversations over the past few weeks, trying to come to grips with recent events.

“We are a family of color, and these couple of weeks have been difficult weeks,” he said. “The thing that really has struck me as different is how our young people are energized, but also the fact that law enforcement is speaking up now about this. Many are saying this isn’t us, and we are against this. 

“That makes me hopeful.”