This month, Sidney Skurkovich will be helping Barrington residents build a mosaic sign that will greet people as they enter town along the Wampanoag Trail.

A grant from PLAN (Personal Lifetime Advocacy Network of Rhode Island), a nonprofit that supports families with relatives who have disabilities, offered Sidney an opportunity to share his art with the community. 

From July 11 to 16, Barrington residents will use Sidney’s artwork to create a mosaic sign that will be located near the community garden on the Wampanoag Trail — Sidney selected artwork that is based on things that are grown in the garden, such as vegetables and sunflowers. 

The creation of the mosaic will take place at the Barrington Community Garden. People can register to participate at https://www.signupgenius.com/index.cfm?go=s.signup&urlid=10c0a4eacaf2ca0fa7-community&view=calendar

“Sidney has always enjoyed the Barrington Community Garden,” said Carol Dorros, Sidney’s mother. “He likes to garden, but more so he enjoys meeting new people and helping them. This seemed like a natural fit, the opportunity to bring people into the garden for a different reason and to do something positive.”

Sidney developed a love for art while at the Rhode Island School for the Deaf. He was born with significant physical and cognitive impairments as well as profound deafness. After attending preschool and middle school at Rhode Island School for the Deaf, Sidney opted to attend high school at Barrington High School. The integrated experience proved extremely rewarding — he was a member of the Unified basketball and volleyball teams, attended a variety of classes, and for years introduced the “Sign language word of the week” on the Sunrise morning news show.

Sidney’s interest in art flourished at Barrington High School under the instruction of art teacher Doreen Lindenburg. Art helped him connect with others and improved his ability to focus for longer periods of time.

Now 26 years old, Sidney continues to create art. Using a unique sense of color and design, he produces pieces of art that have been described as being as friendly, happy and outgoing as he is.

He has also created Card Sensations, greeting cards that feature his artwork. They can be purchased at The Coffee Depot in Warren.