Water for Everyone Mural

Kent District Library, East Grand Rapids Branch • Grand Rapids, MI • 2026

When the Friends of the EGR Library connected me with this wall in the picture book section, it was a vast expanse of beige and white; I immediately saw it as a horizon. Inspired by the rich ecological makeup nearby Reeds Lake, I envisioned a three-part journey weaving through nature. We begin underwater, swimming among the fish. Emerging to the surface, we enter the marshland, where amphibians and insects call home. Lastly, we soar above the lake with birds, catching a glimpse of sailboats gliding across the water.

The lake provides refuge for all types of living things. Much like the library, the lake is a resource for all, and we must take care of it in return. This mural invites the outside in, igniting curiosity and awareness in the littlest library-goers. In the words of David Attenborough, “No one will protect what they don’t care about, and no one will care about what they have never experienced.”