August 28, 2026 – A new mural in Decatur is celebrating the many different ways people can use their voices to advocate for others.
Webster-Cantrell Youth Advocacy hosted a ribbon cutting Friday for Advocate, a mural created by artist Antonio Burton as part of the Untold Stories initiative.
The project is a partnership involving the Heart of Illinois Community Foundation, the Illinois Arts Council and Webster-Cantrell Youth Advocacy.
Heart of Illinois Community Foundation CEO Natalie Beck welcomed those attending the unveiling and highlighted the purpose of Advocate and its connection to the Untold Stories initiative. Webster-Cantrell provided a highly visible home for the mural.
For Burton, the project has a deeply personal connection to Webster-Cantrell and the Decatur community.
Burton said he worked with Webster-Cantrell while attending Eastern Illinois University, driving to Decatur to serve the children there. He also said his mother worked for Webster-Cantrell while he was growing up. Burton said the mural also brought his own journey as an artist full circle, recalling a mentor who once encouraged him to use his voice.
He designed each letter in Advocate differently to represent the many forms advocacy can take. “When you advocate, it looks so many different ways,” Burton said. “And I want that to be represented throughout the community.”
Burton said he intentionally avoided giving the imagery an identity that could place people into categories or stereotypes. Instead, the mural centers on the idea of seeing and serving people simply as human beings.
He said the heart incorporated into the design represents the importance of looking beyond labels, backgrounds and circumstances. “When God looks at you, he judges your heart,” Burton said. “Not your bank account. Not the skin type. Not your past, not your history — your heart.”
Burton said his hope is that the mural will remind people to become advocates for those who may not have a voice, regardless of what area of advocacy they represent.
The artist also reflected on his own path to becoming an artist, remembering that he used to doodle in class and sometimes got in trouble for it. “Now people pay me to do art,” Burton said, crediting God for giving him the talent and opportunity to pursue his work.
