Neighbors in the Avondale-Riverside area are among those honoring health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On St. Johns Avenue, the street has been lined with dozens of tin foil stars hanging from the trees to create an "Avenue of Stars."
A handmade banner posted at the corner of St. Johns Avenue and Avondale Avenue reads, “Healthcare Workers Rockstars,” a tribute to the many hospital staff who pass down St. Johns Avenue on their way to or from work at Ascension St. Vincent’s Riverside hospital.
In an email to WJCT News, the Riverside Avondale Preservation group said Randy Stephens, who has lived on St. Johns Avenue for more than 30 years, is credited as the "mastermind” of the project.
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“I wanted to come up with a project for the kids to do, since their mothers and dads are all busy right now,” she told Riverside Avondale Preservation.
Since St. Johns Ave. is a major thoroughfare for medical personnel, she decided to create a project that could show the community’s support and gratitude to front line workers.
Stephens and some friends created a flyer explaining the project, also providing a template for creating the stars out of tin foil, leaving them on neighborhood front porches. They waited, and stars began to appear in the trees up and down the street.
“We chose tin foil because it’s something most people have around the house, and we didn’t want anyone to have to go out just to get supplies for this project,” Stephens said. “It’s been fun to see how many people are participating.”
Stephens and her neighbors plan to keep the stars up for as long as they will withstand the elements.
