'Before I Die ...' hopes and dreams sought

Putting up her response to "Before I Die ..." on the wall at Vine and Poplar streets is Tammy Hunter, director of the Putnam County Hospice and Palliative Care Association. The wall will remain up through the end of April.

"Before I Die" is an interactive public art project that invites people to share their personal aspirations in a public space.

The original wall was created by artist Candy Chang after she lost someone she loved. In February 2011, she created the first wall on an abandoned house in New Orleans.

She painted the side of the house with chalkboard paint and stenciled the sentence "Before I die I want to _." Within 24 hours the wall was covered with her neighbors' dreams and wishes for their lives. Since then the wall has been recreated in more than 73 countries and Before I Die has been translated in more than 16 languages.

Last fall the Greencastle Arts Council decided to make its own wall and share it with the community, and recently it partnered with Putnam County Hospice and Palliative Care Association to present it again on National Healthcare Decisions Day, April 16.

The wall near the Vine and Poplar street interection will be up until April 30 for community residents to share their hopes and dreams for their lives.