Purdue students lead effort for bronze sculpture project

February 28, 2008

Purdue students lead effort for bronze sculpture project

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - In an effort to beautify campus and motivate and encourage students both during their time at Purdue and after graduation, a group of student leaders are working to gain support and raise money for a bronze sculpture that will be placed on campus.

The sculpture, which will be in the form of an unfinished Block P, will serve as a reminder that even after graduating from Purdue, the student experience is never complete, and a person's educational journey is forever being shaped, said Brian Petraits, a senior in the College of Technology who is involved in the project.

A student originally presented the idea for the project to the Purdue Reamer Club in the spring of 2007. Since then, student leaders from the Reamer Club and other campus organizations have been presenting the Block P project to the President's Round Table and other student organizations.

"Student support has been tremendous thus far," Petraits said. "They have really taken a liking to the project and have been willing to offer their time and resources. Without all their support and dedication to the idea, the Block P project – from conception to planning to donations – would not have been possible."

As the students worked with the university to gain approval for the project, they selected Rick and Rita Hadley, two bronze artists from Otterbein, Ind., to craft the sculpture. Petraits said the student committee has been impressed with the efforts and dedication of the artists, and the students are eager to continue working with the Hadleys during the next few months.

A gift from the June and Charles Bertsch Foundation in Warsaw, Ind., allowed the artists to create a clay model of the Block P, which has been used to help potential donors and supporters visualize the project. Smaller bronze replicas of the statue also will be created. Petraits said the student committee hopes these replicas will be given to the families of students who are memorialized at the Golden Taps Ceremonies each semester. The small replicas also will be sold in an effort to maintain the landscape where the statue will be placed and to continue maintenance on the Block P project.

The students' goal is to raise $100,000 to fund the Block P project. At this point, $61,000 has been raised. Donations can be sent to the Purdue Foundation, c/o Block P Project, 403 W. Wood St., West Lafayette, IN 47907-2007, or by phone at (800) 319-2199. Donations can also be made online at https://www.purdueblockp.com/
getinvolved.shtml

Writer: Christy Jones, (765) 494-1089, christyjones@purdue.edu

Source: Brian Petraits, (317) 457-0148, bpetrait@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

To the News Service home page