Outside of the halls of Leesville stands a larger-than-life interpretation of the Leesville Pride. Situated near the parking circle by the Junior and Senior parking lots, the Pride Mural boasts a large multicolored lion and his mane.
Standing over ten feet tall, the mural was painted for the rising senior class of 2017 during the course of this past summer. The sun shines directly on the artwork as the lion stares off proudly into the distance; as if destined to be a protector of Leesville.
As the soon to be graduating seniors move beyond Leesville, one last senior parting gift is being given to the class.
“This years senior gift is a near-replica of the mural we painted over the summer. I picked the same students who helped the project come to life over the summer to paint this one,” said Carson Rainey, a senior at Leesville.
The project, with colors slightly changed, is in the cafeteria overlooking the senior seating. Throughout the day, multiple students from various art classes travel to the cafeteria to help the painting come to life.
Starting with the outline of the lion, the work has now developed into the coloring phase. “The different colored x’s represent the colors that we will put inside the borders,” said Rainey. While the project is set to be completed by Friday, a special addition is being added to the mix to make the mural truly unique.
“The mural is intended to represent our entire senior class. We added two parts on either side of the mural dedicated to the lives of Jonathan Lewis and Lauren Jenkins,” said Rainey. Lewis and Jenkins were seniors that passed away earlier this year.
With a new lion overlooking the cafeteria and artwork on the sides honoring our lost students, the updated lion mural serves as a permanent mainstay of Pride that will forever be at the heart of Leesville Road High School.
