TOWANDA, Pa (WENY) -- A Bradford County native has made her way back home to help paint and beautify one spot in Towanda. Courtney Oley is a wildlife portrait artist who now lives in Florida, but made her way back to Pennsylvania to give back to the community through art.

"The start [of this] has been wonderful, and I'm still just as excited as I was on day one. I wish I could finish this on this trip, but with winter coming, the goal is to have it done by next summer," said Oley.

The murals can be found on John B. Merrill Parkway in Towanda.

 

"We wanted to do this mural project for the Borough along Merrill Parkway [because] we have the walkway [across from it] and Courtney's specialty is wildlife animals. They're so vivid [and] bright, I thought...Why not make each individual panel a Pennsylvania native wildlife species?," said Towanda Borough Manager, Lauren Hotaling.

If anyone is interested in having a portrait painted of an animal of their choice, people can sponsor one mural for about $1,200.

Hotaling said so far, 21 panels are sponsored out of the 33. Businesses and clubs from the area have already donated to the project. However, it isn't just limited to them; families can also donate to have a portrait done.

Oley said she had the honor of painting a fox to honor a family who lost their daughter five years ago. She also said she had the mother and aunt help paint the base layer of the portrait. If you happen to walk by the fox mural and look closely, you can see Oley spelled out 'Grace' in the fox's ear, as a tribute.

 
"Her family wanted to get together and get this painting in honor of her. Her hair was red, and her mom said her spirit animal was the fox. I love being able to do nice things [and] using art to make people feel good, especially in times like that. It's a really sweet thing to do for people," said Oley.

If someone wants to sponsor a panel, they can contact Borough Manager Lauren Hotaling at 570-268-9204 or by email at lauren@towandaborough.org. The estimated cost of $1,200 for sponsoring a panel goes towards Oley's costs and the Borough picked up the paint and supplies.

Oley plans to paint as many portraits as she can until it's too cold and has to head back to Florida. She asks people who drive or walk by to keep going past her. While she would love to talk with everyone who stops by to chat while she's painting, she said it keeps her from getting her work done. However, people are welcome to attend a meet-and-greet with Oley to ask her about the portraits. The meet-and-greet will take place on Tuesday, October 24th at 6 p.m. at the Flying Taco Mexican Grill in Towanda.