Wildcats' history depicted in new mural about Riley High School

On the corner of Ewing and Miami, history is taking shape.

Dave Blodgett steps back from the mural he has been working on all summer. He adds a few strokes of beige paint to the football uniform and stands back again. He looks at a photo of a football player and returns to the artwork. Dave said he was happy with this part of the mural. “It has good movement.”

Yes, it does look good.

The mural is the history of Riley High School from James Whitcomb Riley’s scholarly portrait to sport teams, and music and classroom work at the other end. The girls have long skirts and hold an armful of books, the basketball player goes for the dunk, and the Riley Wildcat is ready to pounce. Looking over everything is the noted principal Algie Oldham, who led the school in the 1970s. All this history is 70-feet-by-16-feet.

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You know what this mural needs? It needs a little financial support. More on that later. Riley alumni take note. Or supporters of the arts.

The building is about six blocks from the high school and across from the Virginia Tutt Branch of the St. Joseph County Public Library. It is the heart of Wildcat country. You can hear the marching band practice in the afternoon all the way to Miami.

People drive by and honk. Others stop by and ask for details. The neighbors have brought water and snacks for the small crew.

The artist is well known in the area. Dave worked for years with his wife, Linda Crimson. Together they painted more than 100 murals in the area. Both shared their love of art by teaching at Indiana University South Bend. Linda died in 2017.

Dave and Linda painted a history of South Bend mural on The Tribune building in the 1980s. The mural included the likes of Alexis Coquillard and Knute Rockne. Then a new press building was constructed later on the site and it was goodbye to artwork.

Dave was a little surprised that anyone remembered the Tribune mural. Some of us walked by it every day. Sometimes twice a day.

Judith Overmyer was the engine for the project. She raised four Riley students but worked at Adams High. She taught home economics and helped with the Mock Trial team there.

“Last year, when there was discussion about which high school to close, I got this idea: a mural to salute Riley.”  She had seen that Dave had painted a mural in North Liberty. He was the right man for the job.

The vacant building has this long, beautiful exterior wall with no graffiti.

She said the school will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2024. That was another factor. “If the administration closed Riley, I wanted it to be remembered, to be a memorial.”

“I liked the idea of the mural,” Dave said. “I did some research and sketched some ideas. I didn’t know Judith. But I liked her ideas.”

Judith talked to Riley staff and administrators and retired coaches who met for coffee at a Martin’s Super Market.

The work began in spring, and the first building took its place at the far left of the mural. Judith said it is about 75% done now. All the sketching has been completed. Judith helps paint and fill in the big areas, no details.

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Dave works the early morning shift before the sun moves to the south. “If the weather holds up, I’ll be working on it through the fall.” He is sure he will get it done.

Tim Andrews, Class of 1973, lives within blocks of the mural. Tim came to admire but came back to paint. He and fellow graduate Betsy Stover have helped. “I love it. It welcomes people to the neighborhood. I can look at the swimmer and say I painted in the blue.”

Tim hopes it lasts for a good long time and doesn’t get tagged.

Judith said she has done some fundraising to finish the project. About $8,000 is needed. Some alumni have stepped up. The over-50 years alumni group has made some donations. She was hoping the swim teams from the past would like to contribute once the swimmer was added. “We have hit a plateau. It has really slowed down.”

Judith said checks can be sent to her at 3447 S. Locust Road, South Bend, IN 46614. Checks can be made out to “Overmyer — mural.”

She said several people have stopped by daily and asked how to donate. “I’m going to put a sign out in the tree lawn asking for donations. I want to get the word out. To me, this is a wonderful project.”

Kathy's email is [email protected].

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Mural about Riley High School takes shape in South Bend