BUILD: The Neighborhood, Where Everyone Belongs

At Full STEAM Ahead, we believe that the strongest communities are built when everyone has a place within them. That belief came to life through BUILD: The Neighborhood, a collaborative community art project, made possible through support from the North Dakota Council on the Arts.

Formerly known as the Welcome Wall, BUILD: The Neighborhood marked the first major evolution of the project in four years. While the name changed, its purpose remained the same: creating a space where every individual feels seen, valued, and welcomed.

The project was led by Hanna Saagge Kemp and Adam Kemp, serving as our first Artists in Residence. Together with artists Lowell Miller, Kylee Danks, Andy, Tommy, Peter, Vivian, and many children and community members, they transformed a creative vision into a vibrant expression of inclusion and belonging.

Yet, BUILD: The Neighborhood became much more than an art project.

Partners including Development Homes Inc. (DHI), Grand Forks Growth & Support, Polk County DAK and other community organizations came together to ensure the project reflected the people, perspectives, and talents that strengthen our community.

Individuals of all abilities contributed their creativity, ideas, and talents, helping shape a neighborhood that represented not only buildings and spaces, but the people who call this community, home.

That spirit of inclusion extended far beyond the artwork itself. Throughout Full STEAM Ahead, DHI residents played a visible and meaningful role as greeters and ambassadors, welcoming guests, sharing in the experience, and helping create an environment where everyone felt at home. Their warm presence embodied the very message BUILD: The Neighborhood was designed to convey that every person has value, every voice matters, and everyone deserves the opportunity to belong.

Each contribution added to the installation carried a simple message: everyone has something valuable to offer. Every brushstroke, every idea, and every interaction became part of a larger story about acceptance, participation, and connection.

The completed work serves as a reminder that inclusion is more than inviting

someone to participate. It is creating opportunities for people to be seen, heard, and celebrated for who they are.

Through BUILD: The Neighborhood, artists, children, families, DHI residents, and community members worked side-by-side to create something that none could have built alone.

Like the future Grand Forks Children's Museum, the project reflects a vision of a community where creativity belongs to everyone, every person is valued, and every individual can find their place.

By bringing artists, children, families, and individuals of all abilities together, BUILD: The Neighborhood reminds us that belonging is not simply being welcomed into a community. It is being recognized as an important part of it, knowing that every individual has something valuable to contribute to the larger story of our community.

BUILD: The Neighborhood is more than a work of art. BUILD: The Neighborhood reflects the kind of community we hope to create: one where everyone belongs, everyone is valued and everyone contributes. It reminds us that when we welcome every voice, celebrate every ability, and create together, we build more than a neighborhood. We build a community.

Katie Mayer, Executive Director, Grand Forks Children's Museum