Thirteen one-gallon paint cans sat on a nearby countertop, as Lola Watson dipped her paint brush into a small plastic cup. A 14-year employee of Temple University Hospital–Episcopal Campus, Watson smiled as she carefully applied red paint into the outline of a rainbow.
“I am so proud to be working on this” said Watson, a security assistant account manager at TUH–Episcopal. “It's something that is bringing our community together and giving us all hope. To see something like this, how can you not be inspired?”
Watson joined dozens of TUH–Episcopal employees who rolled up their sleeves on October 15 to paint the vinyl panels of what will eventually be a 55-foot-tall mural that is affixed to a wall facing Lehigh Avenue.
TUH–Episcopal Campus was selected by Mural Arts Philadelphia as the installation location for the newest of Philadelphia’s more than 4,000 murals — more displays of public art than any other city in the world. When it's completed, the mural — designed by Philadelphia native artist Alloyius McIlwaine and funded by the city’s Department of Behavioral Health & Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS) — will occupy a six-story space located between the hospital’s main entrance and its emergency department.
Mural Arts Philadelphia staff and McIlwaine visited TUH–Episcopal to offer assistance and instruction over a four-hour painting session, during which employees of the hospital took shifts bringing McIlwaine's mural to life.
"A visible and lasting testament"
McIlwain’s mural concept draws attention to the national suicide and crisis hotline, 988. The three-digit crisis line was piloted in a few select cities across the U.S. in 2022, including Philadelphia. Analysis of the 988 crisis line in the months following its launch indicated effectiveness, with 98% of 437 callers reporting that their call helped them, according to published research.
“The privilege of providing compassionate care and supporting recovery through our Crisis Response Center at Episcopal is a commitment we honor each day,” said John Robison, executive director of TUH–Episcopal Campus. “Our collaboration with the Mural Arts' Porch Light initiative, through the development and installation of a six-story mural facing Lehigh Avenue, will stand as a remarkably visible and lasting testament to the community of our collectively shared vision of achieving health and wellness for Philadelphians.”
“When hospital staff pick up a brush alongside our artists, you see what Porch Light is all about,” said Emily Mello, Executive Director of Mural Arts Philadelphia. “Hands-on art-making can be a pathway to healing, for the people who create it and for everyone who sees it. This mural will remind everyone that help is available, hope is real, and no one in this community is alone.”
The mural will feature the vibrant and colorful outline of a person’s head and torso area, with symbols of calm, tranquility, and positive affirmation filling the person’s head and connected to similar imagery in their heart. (McIlwaine referred to them as “kudo-glyphs.”) Surrounding the person will be depictions, in grayscale, of support services and hopeful metaphors. Among them: a handshake, a life preserver, a butterfly emerging from a cocoon, a rising sun, a bullhorn positioned near the word “ADVOCACY,” and a car beneath the message “RACING TO RECOVERY.”
Uplifting messages will be interspersed throughout McIlwaine’s work, including, “Respect Autonomy”; “No Judgment”; “Safe Space”; and “Build Trust.”
“I have had friends who have been affected by mental health issues,” said McIlwaine, who has created more than 450 murals across 19 countries and territories outside the U.S. “These resources are not only important; they are necessary.”
Episcopal's legacy of care
TUH–Episcopal Campus is home to one of Philadelphia’s five crisis response and behavioral assessment centers. Among the five, Episcopal Campus sees the highest volume.
Operating 24 hours a day, 365 days each year, the Crisis Response Center (CRC) at Episcopal offers a safe setting that prioritizes dignity in delivering care for adults who need emergency mental health evaluations, substance-use assessments, psychiatric care, stabilization, and referral services.
Episcopal’s Crisis Response Center tripled its size in 2025 — expanding from 4,400 square feet to more than 14,000 square feet, with $3 million in capital funding support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The CRC also opened a licensed outpatient Substance Use Disorder Clinic, allowing Episcopal to offer access to certified recovery specialists and meet patients' addiction and behavioral health needs without requiring appointments.
“I work every single day with substance abuse patients,” said Melissa Cintron, an addiction therapist at TUH–Episcopal, who applied the first flecks of yellow paint to the mural. “I tell them every day, 'Life has a bigger purpose beyond the reason that brought you here.' This mural is a testament to that. It should bring all of us hope for a better tomorrow.”
