Artist creates colorful campus mural for students at Peabody Elementary

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - A Friday Flag Ceremony at Peabody Elementary kicked off the school day with the unveiling of a new mural.

Eden Andrulaitis, a Peabody alumna, is also a talented artist. She said she wanted to give back to a place that was special to her.

"It's very easy to draw inspiration for this," said Andrulaitis. "There's a lot of things that makes Peabody very special, from like cinnamon rolls to its arts programs."

Andrulaitis approached Peabody administrators awhile back with the idea for a mural. The process took about year. She was introduced to the project in December of 2021, then started the project in the Summer of 2022.

She said students from the border program at Santa Barbara High School volunteered their skills to help her a little bit with the backgrounds.

"The kids have loved this mural and I think one of the things that they love about it is that they see things from their everyday life," said Superintendent Principal Demian Barnett.

Andrulaitis brought not only her memories, but she also interviewed many of the kids before she created her design.

She said it's a full circle moment, something she will never forget and wants the students to "interpret the mural the way it speaks to them."