WACO, TX — Creative Waco unveiled new sculptures honoring those who helped rebuild the city after the devastating 1953 tornado.
The three kinetic sculptures were displayed on March 19 on Austin Avenue at the corner of the Roosevelt Building parking lot.
The sculptures, which were created by artist Mark White of New Mexico, were donated by Clifton and Besty Robinson to honor the Waco High School graduating classes of 1953, 1954, 1955 and 1956. Those students’ lives were forever shaped by the aftermath of the tornado.
Clifton was a junior at Waco High School the day the tornado hit. He says he remembers spending the days and weeks after the tornado digging through the rubble to recover and rescue people.
“Public art is powerful. It helps us tell the stories of people and events that shape our community”, said Fiona Bond, Executive Director of Creative Waco. “It’s also a symbol of the cooperation and collaboration that it takes to get good things done.”
The Robinsons are also the lead donors in Waco’s two largest collections of public art, the “Branding the Brazos” and the upcoming sculpture which will be placed along the Brazos River leading into the Cameron Park Zoo.
