After a 14-month absence, the beautiful dolphin sculpture is back in its rightful place in front of the Community Center, welcoming all to Port O’Connor.
Hurricane Harvey had damaged the bronze sculpture, knocking off two fins and making a couple of gouges. Donnie Haynes of Action Welding offered to weld them up, but welding bronze is not your every day job, so he first had to research what type of rods to use and purchase them.
Cleaning the statue when welding was complete was another step that had to be researched. Chemical cleaners were not successful, so it was decided to sandblast. Over time, and many blasting mediums later, one was finally found that would etch the bronze without tearing it up.
Donnie taught Marilyn Giessel how to sandblast; completing that job, she then painted it. More research was required to choose the right type of fasteners to anchor the sculpture. Gary Cunningham and Nick Wright of The Tidelands helped with that job, and the dolphins were finally remounted.
“So in a nut shell, a lot of the delays were due to weather, timing, volunteers schedules, and mostly what I call ‘The Learning Curve’”, Marilyn said. “None of us had any experience with bronze sculptures, so we spent a lot of time researching metallurgy, chemical cleaners, sandblasting mediums, and coatings to finally get to what you now see.”
Marilyn has cleaned up the mount and limestone benches and will re-coat the green schist rock around the sculpture, as well as rebuild the border with stone. It will take some time but the main attraction is finally back up.
“A big thank you to those mentioned in this article who helped me, as well all of you that volunteered to help, and also those that missed the dolphins and asked about them,” said Marilyn.
For those who aren’t familiar with the dolphins, they were donated in 2012 to the Port O’Connor Community Center by the families of three young men who lost their lives in an automobile accident on January 6, 2001. The plaque reads “IN MEMORY OF JESSE, NICK and DUSTY AND OTHERS LOST TOO SOON. SPIRITS FREE FOR ETERNITY! Jesse Giessel~ Mar. 8, 1984 ~ Jan. 6, 2001; Nickolas Colby Pack, Sept. 2, 1984 ~Jan. 6, 2001 and Dustin DeLynn May, July 30, 1983 ~ Jan. 6, 2001.
