'That sent my imagination wild': B.C. grandma paints 12-foot Star Wars mural with grandson
As Sandra Kroek cleans up the leaves in her back yard, she recalls when her children were little and rakes rarely just raked.
“If they could find a piece of wood or an old garden tool,” Sandra smiles. “They would turn it into a lightsaber.”
While Sandra will never forget how fun it was seeing that first Star Wars movie for the first time, the prolific artist always preferred wielding paintbrushes over lightsabers.
But then her kids had kids, and Sandra got to experience a whole new set of Star Wars movies with her grandson, Remington.
“It’s fun to sit and relax and watch the movies,” says Remington, before the iconic Star Wars theme erupts from their TV. “And see all the cool action!”
But even better, is that when the 11-year-old recreates the action with his grandma, he’s not having to resort to using old rakes.
Remington got a pair of realistic-looking lightsabers the change colours and make sounds during a recent visit to the Star Wars attraction at Disneyland. Around the same time someone in their family suggested combining his passion, with Sandra’s painting.
“So that just sent my imagination wild,” Sandra smiles.
What she came up with couldn’t be contained by a canvas. So, Sandra set her sights on a blank basement wall and started sketching a substantial celebration of Star Wars.
“It’s just crazy to watch how she sits there for three hours,” Remington says. “Just painting and painting and painting.”
Like Yoda famously said, “Do or do not. There is no try.” Sandra and Remington did what they had to do to create a portal into “a galaxy far, far away.”
After Sandra drew all the elements on the wall — from Darth Vader to Kylo Ren, Remington helped her paint them as accurately as possible.
“[He would say] it’s really good Oma, but that Storm Trooper wouldn’t be wearing that helmet,” Sandra recalls with a laugh. “So it was like, ‘Oh. Ok. I can fix that!’”
And once every detail was right, on not just the old characters (like Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia), but the new ones too (like Rey), plus the beloved bots (from C-3PO to BB-8) to their favourite flying ships (Millennium Falcon), they decided it was done.
“I stepped back and I looked,” Remington smiles. “And it was just ‘Wow!’”
While seeing the 12-foot-wide mural for the first time would make most us say ‘wow’, after spending 200 hours over 18 months creating it, this grandma and grandson feel grateful.
“It was fun,” Sandra smiles. “And it’s such a special time to get to have really good conversations, that sometimes can be very deep.”
“It was fun, talking and hanging out and stuff,” Remington smiles. “It’s just good memories.”
It’s like finding ‘The Force’ is with you, always.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Alberta RCMP officer charged with 2 counts of sexual assault
Const. Bridget Morla, a Leduc RCMP officer, has been charged with two counts of sexual assault in connection with an incident that happened two years ago.
Ontario dad removes hockey rink at heart of neighbour dispute
A Markham dad who drew the ire of neighbours and the city after installing a hockey rink in his backyard says the rink has now been taken down.
Motivated by obsession: Canadians accused in botched California murder plot in police custody
Two Canadians are in police custody in Monterey County, California, after a triple stabbing police say was motivated by a B.C. man's obsession with a woman he played video games with online.
Kingston, Ont. doctor in 'disbelief' after being ordered to repay $600K for pandemic vaccination payments
An Ontario health tribunal has ordered a Kingston, Ont. doctor to repay over $600,000 to the Ontario government for improperly billing thousands of COVID-19 vaccinations at the height of the pandemic.
Trump demands immediate release of Oct. 7 hostages, says otherwise there will be 'HELL TO PAY'
President-elect Donald Trump is demanding the immediate release of the Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza, saying that if they are not freed before he is sworn into office there will be “HELL TO PAY."
Belly fat linked to signs of Alzheimer’s 20 years before symptoms begin, study says
As the size of a person’s belly grows, the memory centre of their brain shrinks and beta amyloid and tau may appear — all of this occurring as early as a person’s 40s and 50s, well before any cognitive decline is apparent, according to new research.
AC/DC announces North American stadium tour, Vancouver lone Canadian stop
Big news for AC/DC fans as the heavy metal bigwigs announced Monday they will hit the road next spring. But as of now, there’s only one Canadian show on the docket.
Alleged gang member driving from U.S. arrested at Canadian border after making wrong turn
An alleged gang member coming from the United States was arrested at the Canadian border after reportedly making a wrong turn onto the Peace Bridge border crossing.
Nova Scotia lawyer suspended following ugly courtroom fracas
A Nova Scotia lawyer who had to be restrained by deputy sheriffs during a court appearance earlier this year has lost his appeal of a suspension following the bizarre incident.