Cranes on display in Mason City honor Iowa COVID-19 deaths
(ABC 6 News) – A display of paper cranes has been traveling around Iowa over the past couple years. The display spent the last five months in the Activity Center at North Iowa Area Community College.
President of the college Steve Schulz shares what the thought process was of having the display on campus. “The whole idea was to really reflect on this time period and give people a safe place to think about the impact of COVID in their lives and remember their loved ones that were lost.”
This display of folded cranes was created by Iowa artist Pamela Douglas. The display features 10,790 cranes, representing each person who died in Iowa over the past few years from COVID-19.
Douglas did most of the display herself, bringing in a couple volunteers as the death toll rose. The names of those people are also handwritten on the cranes.
Sophomore Elic Fjetland thinks it’s a great display. “It’s pretty awesome. It’s not something I was expecting when I came back.”
College students are not the only ones wondering about the display.
“I give tours to fifth graders once a month, and they always ask about the display,” said Fjetland. “So, I have to tell them about it.”
When asked about how COVID changed his life, Fjetlan stated “It changed my world, and everyone’s world around us.”
Schulz still came on campus, but continues to see the pandemic’s impacts; not seeing students on campus and how COVID impacted his family. “It really made you appreciate your home, your spouse, your family because that’s the circle you could get to.”
Schulz says the cranes will probably be moved around the start of the new year, however, if it were up to him, he would have kept them around a bit longer. “I did offer to buy it from her, but she wants to share this a little more broadly.”
As far as where this display will end up next, well that’s about as up in the air as the cranes themselves. We will have an update once a location is picked out. Brochures are available on campus and there is also a website with more information here.