‘Tunnel Vision’ Eases Patients’ Fear Lush Make-Over Gives Hand On Passage To Cancer Center

For years, the trip through the drab tunnel between the hospital and North Idaho Cancer Center did nothing to alleviate the dread of treatment.

The pneumatic tubes carrying laboratory samples through the tunnel hissed and clattered. Voices on the other end echoed down a long corridor that dips and rises again at the other end.

Water stains offered the only visual variety along the underground concrete walls.

Now, with a new coat of blue and green base paint, it looks like a surreal scene in a Dr. Seuss book.

But in a few months, walking through the tunnel will be like passing through a lush forest full of smiling trees, Cheshire cats, monkeys and other special scenes designed by children throughout Kootenai County.

The giant mural project was the brainchild of local artist Linda Fabrizius.

“I was walking down the tunnel, going to the cancer center - I’m kind of ill myself - and it was nightmarish,” she recalled.

Fabrizius teamed up with Joanie Dwyer, a professional photographer and fellow member of the Kootenai County Arts Council. The two would like to see more murals all over town.

They call this project “tunnel vision.”

It wasn’t a new idea. The staff at the cancer center had wanted to paint the tunnel for some time.

“We’ve probably talked about it since the tunnel was built about 10 years ago, that great big canvass of blankness,” said Sue Gilbert, administrative secretary at the Cancer Center.

The tunnel, which runs 480 feet in length beneath Ironwood Drive, provides safe and easy passage between the Kootenai Medical Center and the Cancer Center.

“It was always dank and grey and monotonous,” said Leslie Daniels, head nurse at the center. “It would be nice to look at something other than the pipes in the ceiling.”

Some staff members avoid the tunnel altogether and cross the busy streets overhead to reach the hospital, she said.

It’s especially hard for patients going from the hospital to the center for radiation treatment.

“The whole experience can be scary,” Daniels said. “They’re usually ill and not feeling well, and the diagnosis may be new. So anything we can do to make the experience more pleasant is something we would aim for.”

Since the KMC Kids day-care center opened, some of the children’s artwork has been displayed in the tunnel. Daniels said patients noticed and appreciated the attempts to perk up the grim tunnel.

One problem that delayed the painting was recurring leaks in the tunnel. For the most part, the leaks now are fixed. Fabrizius and Dwyer approached KMC at the right time with their plan.

“We’ve had a lot of people talk to us about doing something in the tunnel,” said Jim Faucher, KMC’s vice president of community development. “Linda and Joanie came to us with a plan that we thought was really strong.”

The plan calls for the involvement of elementary students from all over Kootenai County. Fabrizius is trying to get each elementary school to paint its own mural theme in sections along the 480-foot tunnel.

Children staying in the hospital will help, too. And each child who participates will leave a handprint as part of the border around their school’s mural.

“I like the idea of leaving their mark anonymously,” Dwyer said, her face beaming at the thought of hundreds of small handprints lining the passageway.

Fabrizius has already started drawing the background for the mural, and this week students started painting the trees and animals that will surround each school’s mural.

On Tuesday afternoon, Barbara Melbourn, 15, and Cathie Clemens, 13, lay on their bellies painting blades of grass along the bottom of the wall.

“The grass has to go down the whole tunnel,” Clemens said as she patiently painted blade by blade.

Nearby, Jennifer Burkholder, 14, and Mary Clemens, 10, worked on painting a tree. Fabrizius was doing detail work on another tree, while Dwyer photographed their work.

Their laughter ricocheted off the walls and on down the tunnel.

The four girls will be the core group of workers, helping Fabrizius with the background. She hopes to recruit more teenagers to help guide elementary students when they come to work on their murals.

Anyone interested in helping with the project, or getting their school involved, can call Fabrizius - before 8 p.m. - at 762-5167.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo