Abstract: A wall mount assembly and apparatus for mounting equipment, such as free space optical (FSO) equipment, to a wall. In one embodiment, the wall mount assembly comprises a pair of arcuate-shaped backer bars that are slid into a pair of upper holes defined in a portion of wallboard and disposed within an interior portion of the wall upon assembly. A wall plate, disposed on the front side of the wall, is coupled to the backer bars using a plurality of fasteners, which pass through the upper holes in the wallboard and lower holes in the wallboard. Upon assembly, the backer bars and wall plate engage the wallboard, thereby distributing a cantilevered load applied to the plate across a large portion of the wallboard. The apparatus further includes a support member coupled to the wall plate that provides a mounting surface to which equipment, such as FSO equipment, may be mounted.