Words met walls at the Graffiti Battle as the Wit & Wisdom Poets turned spray-painted scenes into living verse. Moving through color, rhythm, and raw expression, they captured the heart of the day, quick-fire lines, intimate moments, and the pulse of community, transforming each mural into a poem you can hear as much as see.

Susan Nedd wrote the following poem:

Violet Scherer wrote the following poems:

Deb Cassidy wrote the following poems:

Shawn M. Von Briesen wrote the following poems:

Your Health is Your Wealth was the theme for the 2026 Graffiti Battle.

I chose “Your Health is Your Wealth” as the 2026 Graffiti Battle theme to spotlight something universal, urgent, and empowering: without health, physical, mental, or social, every other form of wealth is harder to enjoy or sustain. Art can make that truth visible, personal, and hopeful.

• Health is holistic. The theme invites artists to explore mental health, movement, rest, nutrition, recovery, accessibility, and community care, not as separate issues, but as a connected ecosystem that sustains us.
• Prevention over reaction. Graffiti reaches people where they are on the street, in real time. Murals can nudge simple, preventive actions that compound over a lifetime: drink water, check in with a friend, take a walk, ask for help.
• Equity matters. “Wealth” often overlooks neighborhoods facing barriers to care, food deserts, or unsafe spaces to move. This theme reframes health as a shared asset and a right, not a luxury.
• Culture drives behavior. Beats, color, and bold letters can normalize conversations that feel stigmatized in clinics: stress, anxiety, substance use, and chronic pain. When culture says it’s okay to talk, more people reach out.
• Community is medicine. Battles bring connection: crews collaborate, residents linger, kids ask questions. That social fabric, belonging, mentorship, and joy, is a powerful health determinant.
• Artists as catalysts. Writers and muralists translate big ideas into symbols people remember. They can turn sidewalks into reminders to breathe, move, and care for each other.
• Timeliness. Coming out of years of collective strain, investing in our bodies, minds, and neighborhoods isn’t just smart, it’s healing. The theme channels that momentum into vibrant, public commitments.

In short, “Your Health is Your Wealth” aligns the energy of graffiti with a message that improves lives. It honors artists as storytellers and changemakers, and it turns the battle into more than a competition; it becomes a citywide invitation to take care of ourselves and each other.

Michelle Puzzo, Executive Director, UR Community Cares

860-430-4557

info@urcommunitycares.org