(Peace House, the beleaguered spiritual haven on Franklin that welcomes the city’s most vulnerable, recently completed a mural on the west side of its solitary building. The work pays homage to Peace House founder Sister Rose Tillemans. Gail Hayden, former program coordinator, who now maintains deep ties with Peace House, describes the historical and emotional significance of the wall.)

A wall went up on Franklin Avenue a hundred years ago next year. It braced the wind from the west for decades while sundry Ma and Pa proprietors had their businesses on the first floor and their young families growing and multiplying on the second. Early on there was a laundry; with the advent of television, a TV repair shop evolved.

The wall was constructed of very fine brick; in 1905 it made up part of a building gracing the elegant avenue now called Franklin. Running east and west through the lovely Victorian neighborhood known then and now as Ventura Village, the avenue was constructed sturdily to stand the test of time—and indeed it has.

Twenty-five, 30 years ago or so … ribbons of freeway bisected and dissected the neighborhood, the grand old neighborhood. The gin mills along Washington Avenue moved south when the railroads began to wither and die; drug dealers rolled in instead of trains. A nun came by. On a bike or a bus, I forget which ... she never owned a car. The wall became part of her dream. What if the poor could have a place to gather safely in a neighborhood racked with violence and be encouraged by loving volunteers to speak with their own voices? Could this be?

Word traveled up and down the street. Coffee and donuts at first, later homemade hotdishes and dessert. Because of the nun's kindness, the wall over the next many years was painted and repainted lovingly by volunteers, rich and poor alike, who wanted to see if the dream was real.

For some it was and some it wasn't … so it goes.

Now, beyond railroads, freeways, bike trails and bus lanes we have light rail. The neighborhood is experiencing rebirth. Many who lovingly painted the wall, guarding it from graffiti, participated in planting the colorful flower pots on the avenue and the gardens around some of the schools. A committee to weed and seed was formed and the wall was getting in the way.

An angel, an "Angela," came by this July. Young, blonde, talented and beautiful, she asked to give something to the neighborhood she now called home. Art being her medium of expression led to a design being created that now dresses the wall in brand new clothes … glittering glass, shards of tile, and a shrine to a woman called Rose.

I can't tell you any more than that. To see the wall is now up to you. What I can tell you is that the mosaic of broken pieces pulled together into a makeshift whole is much like the Peace House community itself. It started with an idea, materialized out of generosity, mysteriously represents aspects of itself unique to each particular eye of the beholder (or soul, if you will) and exists now, finally through many individuals' labor of love and hands-on hard work. If you get up close and personal you'll touch the face of Peace House's founder, Sister Rose Tillemans. Her portrait and written words are at the center of the wall just as her life became the core of a ministry drawing people to a place to belong. If you drive by at sunset, you'll be blinded by the light. If you come from the other direction you won't see it at all.

About the Artist

Angela Joy Carlson uses mirrors, glass and tile to adorn urban walls. A Minnesota native and a recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin, she has introduced the art of wall mosaic, most notably at Muddy Waters Coffeehouse, and now at Peace House, 510 East Franklin. Making use of donated glass from Minneapolis Glass Company and tile from the Tile Shop, assisted gently by her immediate family and the Peace House family, the wall is ready to be dedicated. On Thursday, Oct. 7, a ceremony at 5 p.m. will honor the artist and celebrate "points of light" with gratitude.