Throughout the Pocono Mountains, in our small towns and beyond, you'll find vibrant murals that were created by local artists and pay homage to the area. The latest and largest mural in downtown Stroudsburg is turning heads, not just because of the size, but because of the story behind it.

Jody Singer with the Stroudsburg-based organization GO Collaborative wanted to bring a meaningful design to this blank canvas on Lower Main Street. Through research, he learned a Stroudsburg native went on to become an astronaut, and knew the story should be brought to life.

“There is a message behind it. We want people to dream big, work hard, and achieve goals not only for themselves, but for our communities. This mural is for you, it’s for everyone,” said Jody Singer.  

Jody tracked down the man behind his mural, Dr. Byron Lichtenberg, and the Pocono Television Network recently spoke with him from Texas, where he now lives.

“I was honored to learn about the mural, it kind of came out of the blue,” Dr. Byron Lichtenberg told PTN’s Brianna Strunk.

Byron flew aboard two NASA space shuttle missions in 1983 and 1992, making a total of 310 orbits and logging 468 hours in space.

“It's an amazing experience. It takes us 8.5 minutes to go from the surface of the Earth to a couple hundred miles, going up 17,500 miles an hour. You travel around the whole world in 90 minutes and see all of humanity as we know it. You see all of the Earth in different geographical proportions, and it really humbles you,” he explained.

Byron was on board as the first payload specialist, conducting experiments from space and proving their success before the International Space Station existed.

He recalled, “we stayed inside the shuttle and there was a tunnel that connected us to the space lab module. It was about 25 feet long, 14 feet in diameter. It was full of experiment racks and equipment.”

Byron became interested in space travel while growing up in Stroudsburg, crediting the small town environment and his teachers with fostering his dream. After graduating from Stroudsburg High School in 1965, Byron earned a degree in aerospace engineering from Brown University, then attended MIT for his master’s and doctorate. He also served as an Air Force Fighter Pilot during the Vietnam War.

“When I was flying combat in Vietnam there was a bunch of people trying to kill me, and during the space shuttle missions, everyone was trying to keep me alive. It was very intense, but very exciting,” Dr. Lichtenberg added.

Back in his hometown, the massive mural honoring Byron took more than 60 hours to complete. In addition to support from the borough and building owner, even strangers walking by picked up a paint brush and pitched in, making this a true community effort

“I found it really special how we brought this art piece to life on such a big piece. One of the essential parts about art in general is it's a universal language. We can all speak different languages but when you see a piece of artwork, it can bring out a meaning,” said father-son duo Thomas and Nicholas Dillon, mural artists.

There are nearly 20 murals around the Stroudsburg area, and this is the largest to date. It's part of GO Collaborative's mission to bring local businesses, artists, and the community together.

“Art opens many doors and really introduced this sort of art mecca that we have going on in our area. There are galleries here, artists working in their studios, you'll see lots of different things happening in our town that we didn't have before. I think the introduction was these murals we brought to Stroudsburg, Singer smiled.

From Stroudsburg to space; inspiring local residents, students, and visitors to reach for the stars.

“Set your mind to something and don't give up, that's the big thing,” Dr. Lichtenberg said.