Graduating senior Johnny Allen finds joy in the tedious task

Don't try and put Johnny Allen in a box, even if it's one he welded himself.

Allen, a senior at Wrangell High School, is upfront about his values. He gets up early, works hard, doesn't complain and quietly goes about his business. He finds joy, not just reward, in work that other people might only see as tedious, something that shines through in his choice for a senior project.

For that, Allen has taken it upon himself to freshen up the whale mural outside the Stikine Inn. The painted mural is about the size of a shipping container and it's desperate for a new coat of paint. Allen will solve t...