ALAMOSA — The goal of the GFWC Women's Citizenship Club of Alamosa to finance the building of a bronze sculpture, Cranes in Flight: "Into Thin Air," by local artist Jocelyn Russell is taking shape, according to club members Theresa Rudder and Mary Russell.
The monument will consist of two Sandhill cranes with 8-to-9-foot wing spans as they fly "Into Thin Air." The sculpture will be placed at the Colorado Welcome Center in Alamosa. The location will connect the center to the proposed Hunt Avenue Cultural Trail, linking the welcome center to Cole Park via a pedestrian thoroughfare. As reported in the Valley Courier, the Alamosa City Council recently approved the first reading of an ordinance allowing the city to enter into an agreement with the Colorado Department of Transportation for a grant for the cultural trail. That funding does not include the sculpture.
Sandhill cranes are an iconic species of birds in the San Luis Valley. They are aptly described on the website of Great Sand Dunes National Park as "Majestic, large and wild." They are a stunning sight with a wingspan of up to 6 feet.
Approximately 20,000 cranes visit the Valley as they migrate each spring and fall. They can be seen throughout the region, especially on the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge.
Russell is a native of the San Luis Valley who began her professional career at the age of 12 when she worked for a veterinarian. She is both a painter and sculptor and is known internationally for her work that specializes in wildlife. In 2017, she completed a veritable menagerie of her sculptures consisting of five life-size elephants, five lions, and eleven meerkats for the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans.
The cost of the Alamosa sculpture is about $156,000, with the artist donating her design and sculpting talents worth $70,000.
Currently, the women's club is raising funds and is selling scale models of the sculpture for $3,000. Donations of any amount are welcome.
Last fall, the GFWC Women's Club of Alamosa celebrated its 100th anniversary. According to member Theresa Rudder, the GFWC state organization has a storied history in Colorado and was pivotal in advocating for establishing national parks in the state.
In 1897, Virginia McClurg and Lucy Peabody spoke at a GFWC meeting. They sounded the alarm for the need to protect the cultural heritage and artifacts contained in what would become Mesa Verde National Park. The club organized a committee for the "Restoration and preservation of the cliff dwellings and pueblo ruins in Colorado," which fueled the efforts to protect them and culminated in the establishment of the park in 1906.
In 1912, the Estes Park Women's Club began work on hiking trails and making scenic areas available to the public in what would become Rocky Mountain National Park in 1915. The group was an early advocate of protecting the region as a national park.
Locally, the GFWC has supported many charitable efforts, including donating money for the Senior Citizens Home in Alamosa, sponsoring, and setting up a chapter of the "Friends of the Library," and has established scholarships for women at Adams State University and Trinidad State College.
The sandhill crane sculpture is scheduled to be unveiled in September 2024.
