ROCK SPRINGS – On Tuesday, Downtown Rock Springs welcomed its newest addition to the ever-changing spirit of the area.
The “One Day I Will” wall – better known by many as “Before I Die” walls – was unveiled after the efforts of local seventh and eighth-grade students. Rock Springs Junior High teacher Darcie Punches led the charge.
The wall, located in Bank Court in downtown Rock Springs, provides residents chalk and a canvas to write down inspirational thoughts, their hopes and dreams. It will be monitored and cleaned on a regular basis so everyone can use the wall for inspiration and reflection.
Along with a place to write your thoughts, there is also a place for the more artistic to share an inspiration drawing. A third section was added for residents to write down what they would like to see the old bank building turned into.
The students were inspired by watching a video about the creation of the first wall in New Orleans and wanted to bring in to the area. Punches said it related directly to their final unit of study about the civil rights movements and ways to make civic change by addressing issues in a positive way.
There were several steps in making the wall a reality. Since it was a school-sponsored project, Punches said they felt the name “Before I Die” had to be changed. Students were allowed to vote on an internet survey and “One Day I Will” was selected.
The students soon had one up at the school and it was not long before it was a hit. Seeing the success, Punches and the students started working with Downtown Rock Springs and the Rock Springs Main Street/Urban Renewal Agency. From the beginning, the students eyed a spot in Bank Court.
All their efforts were realized as on Tuesday, the wall was presented to the public. Eighth-grade student Micah Babcock was crucial to the project and was at the unveiling with Punches.
Micah was inspired by the wall and felt it was important enough to get the entire community involved. For him, it was a way to give back to the community. He also said he had a lot of fun planning it and was excited to be first to write on the new addition.
The wall is the first one of its kind in the state of Wyoming.
Before I Die is a global interactive public art project that invites people to share their personal aspirations in public space. The original wall was created by artist Candy Chang in February 2011 in an abandoned house in her neighborhood in New Orleans. Since then, over 1,000 Before I Die walls have been created in 73 countries and 36 languages by passionate people around the world.