Last year’s banners announcing Moraga’s 50th Anniversary of Incorporation added a decorative touch to the Town’s roadways and intersections. The new banners pay homage to monarch butterflies, the California poppy, and Saint Mary’s College.

    “The banner project was initiated by staff’s need to remove the 50th Anniversary banners and wanting to be efficient with Town funds with having the new ones go up at the time the old ones came down,” stated Parks and Recreation Director Mackenzie Brady. “The banner program was initially dreamed up in 2023, prior to the 50th Anniversary ones being created. Art in Public Spaces (APSC) helped to move this process forward.”

    APSC Chairperson Holly Hartz added, “Our committee’s mission is to enhance the quality of life for residents by improving open spaces, celebrating the natural environment, encouraging citizen participation, and making art accessible to all.  The banners are a wonderful example of bringing our mission to life.”

    The monarch and poppy banners are expected to remain up for the next three years and were chosen because they are becoming representative of the Town.  Moraga for Monarchs Co-Founder and Chair Julie Stagg turned down two previous models for the monarch butterfly as they did not depict the local North American species.  The third depiction was correct and selected for the banners. “To me, the monarchs symbolize our town’s commitment to ecology, beauty, and community, three attributes which contribute to making Moraga a wondrous place to live.  I am thrilled and grateful to APSC for reinforcing these values and for reinforcing the importance of Moraga’s geographical area to the preservation of these iconic butterflies.”

    The SMC banners were added as a way of welcoming back students for the fall semester but will be “taken down in a few months and put back up at the beginning of next fall for the next number of years or until SMC decides they don’t want to,” Brady explained.  “Other seasonal banners will be installed in place of the SMC ones and on the other poles currently without banners.”

    APSC Member Darlene Bennett (wife of SMC Men’s Basketball Coach Randy Bennett) stated, “The 50th year banners were such an added value to the Town, so APSC decided that replacing them with new banners was a must. The committee decided to incorporate monarch butterflies and poppies in the new design since both are very special gifts to all in the Town of Moraga.  We decided on a bright blue background to compliment the striking orange of the poppies and butterflies.  APSC also thought that including Saint Mary’s College on some of the banners would be special since the school makes our town exciting and special.”

    The 50th Anniversary banners are still for sale at $100 each. The Town is also thinking of repurposing them for future Town projects. For more information or to buy a banner, contact: recdesk@moraga.ca.us.