Firehouse Subs Honors Heroes With A Unique Mural In St. Cloud

Firehouse Subs is a really interesting business that has a charitable heart.

And an eye for art.

The national franchise serves up firefighter-themed subs and raises money for its Public Safety Foundation. That foundation provides lifesaving equipment, training and support to area first responders and public safety organizations.

So it's no surprise their St. Cloud restaurant has all sorts of firefighter and lifesaving paraphernalia displayed as decor in the dining area.

But also -- front and center in the restaurant -- is a special mural celebrating St. Cloud and its firefighters.

THE ST. CLOUD FIREHOUSE SUBS ARTWORK

The mural was specially-created for the St. Cloud Firehouse Subs shop.

It shows a colorful tableau of firefighters working to put out a nearby fire.

The scene shows Barden Park, the oldest park in St. Cloud. Known as Central Park originally, Barden was a park before Minnesota was a state.

It's also just down 5th Avenue South from where the Firehouse Subs shop is located.

The iconic Barden Park bandshell -- located near what is now St. Cloud State University -- is shown in all its splendor.

Nearby, a grass fire is being attended to by four firefighters -- all anthropomorphic SCSU Husky mascot dogs. (Notice the red, white and black markings on their heads.)

One of those firefighters is rescuing a small deer. Another is spraying water on the fire while two others hold the hose and check the old-timey firetruck equipment.

All in all, it's a cheeky -- but very appropriate -- mural celebrating Firehouse Subs' location and mission.

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THE ARTIST

In each Firehouse Subs restaurant -- and there were over 1,300 of them in North America at the end of last year -- there is a custom, hand-painted mural, not unlike the St. Cloud mural.

The paintings pay tribute to the local communities they're located in.

Ressa Tomkiewicz of Firehouse Subs in Jacksonville, Florida told the New York Times that Joe "Art Brush" Puskas "has been behind the creation of each and every hand-painted mural that adorns the walls of all Firehouse Subs restaurants."

Tomkiewicz says although Puskas has no formal art training, he and his staff have a studio at the company's headquarters. And they've been doing it since Firehouse Subs first opened in 1994.

In celebrating Puskas and his staff, Firehouse Subs told Facebook users about his method.

"He used to travel to each new restaurant and paint the mural right on the wall, but once we started growing across multiple states, that got a little hard for him to do! So now his studio at HQ is where he does all his work...canvases are pinned to the walls, painted, rolled, and then shipped to the restaurant."

All the artwork has the same vibe -- local settings celebrating firefighters.

How cool is that?

You can see the mural anytime the restaurant is open, 10 am to 10 pm, 7 days a week at 335 5th Ave S, Ste 160, Saint Cloud, MN.