Glenside Mural Project Seeks Volunteers This Weekend

The Glenside Civic Association and Arcadia University are calling on neighbors to help create something beautiful this October.

Volunteers of all skill levels are needed to paint a new community mural on both sides of the Keswick Avenue SEPTA bridge in Glenside, Pennsylvania. Priming begins this weekend, October 3 and 4, with painting continuing through early November.

"We'll need lots of helping hands for painting," organizers announced. The best part? No art or painting experience is required.

The mural team will guide volunteers through every brushstroke, offering tasks suited to different comfort levels and abilities. Anyone 14 and older can participate, with opportunities for younger residents planned for later project stages.

The project represents a true community partnership. Arcadia University, which created the stunning LED-lit mural at the Easton Road SEPTA bridge in 2019, secured a Campus250 grant from Campus Philly to fund the effort.

The initiative also brings together Abington Township and Cheltenham Township, turning infrastructure restoration into an opportunity for neighborhood connection. The existing murals needed significant restoration after SEPTA bridge repairs last summer.

The Ripple Effect

Public art projects like this do more than beautify spaces. They give neighbors a chance to create something lasting together, building relationships while improving shared spaces.

Every volunteer who shows up becomes part of the bridge's story. Commuters will pass under their work daily, and future residents will ask about the hands that painted it.

The project transforms a routine repair need into a celebration of community creativity and collaboration.

Interested volunteers can sign up through the Glenside Civic Association's online form. Sometimes the best way to improve your community is simply to show up with a paintbrush.