Teens in juvenile justice system paint mural in downtown Fairborn

A group of young artists are putting up murals in some of our local communities.

Ohio funded three murals to go up in the Miami Valley — the latest being a painted mural in Downtown Fairborn.

It’s an ode to the Miami Valley’s deep connection to air and space.

“It was a no-brainer when it was brought to us,” Chase Vaughn said.

Vaughn is the lead instructor at TNT Martial Arts.

The academy’s building is the canvas and the artists are juvenile offenders from Greene County.

>> PHOTOS: Teens on probation paint mural in downtown Fairborn

“We try and build a lot of core values, discipline, respect, responsibility, and I think they’re getting a little bit of that kind of paying back to the community,” Vaughn said.

As part of a grant from Ohio’s Department of Youth Services, the project is taking shape.

“They were looking for projects that the youth could do to give back to the community, something that they could take pride in the community could take pride of and really stand out as a focal point for you know, the courts working with the community and vice versa, setting up those partnerships,” Josh Hazelrigg, community services director of Greene County Juvenile Court, said.

The mural follows one painted in Shawnee Park in Xenia last summer.

“They really really enjoy being out here and they get out in the sun. They’re building something that’s going to be here long after all of us and they can drive in the future and pointed out to their friends, their family and say ‘hey, I did that.’” Hazelrigg said.

The kids will be working on the mural every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday until it is complete. Members of the community can also help.