They built a wall

Loran Jarrett, on a recent trip to New Orleans, found something that changed her life.

It was a “Before I die...” wall. The 40-by-80 wall is a piece of active public artwork where anyone walking by can write a message of what they want to do before they die. The New Orleans wall, built in 2014, is one of the first ones nationwide. Now there are more than 1,000 walls in 70 countries. Artist Candy Chung created the project, and works with cities and communities on the process to build and maintain a wall.

“It really spoke to me,” says Jarrett, vice president of business development and strategy at Tampa-based luxury branding and marketing firm United Landmark Associates. “I thought this was something we really needed in Tampa.”