A local Detroit Catholic is crowdsourcing funds for a mural of St. Joseph the Worker. The work will adorn an enormous brick wall in the vicinity of Detroit’s famed St. Joseph Shrine. The project comes during the “Year of St. Joseph” declared by Pope Francis, in 2021.
The GoFundMe page was only up for 7-days before it reached and surpassed its initial goal of $20,000. The planning stages have now begun and painting will begin in June. The effort will help beautify an area right around the corner from St. Joseph Shrine, but one of the driving factors behind the fundraiser's success was the fantastic announcement video.
In the video, Daniel Egan announces plans for the project. Exiting his car, clad in shades and puffing a cigar, Egan says “We’re going to paint a mural.” One gets the sense that he’ll figure out how to complete the work, even if the fundraiser failed.
Egan states in the video:
The mural, to be painted by Detroit artist Elton Monray Dúran, will adorn a 102-foot wall that rises to a height of nearly 12 feet. Dúran is no stranger to such large projects, as can be seen on the artist’s website. He is especially talented at portraying lively movement and we are excited about what his style will bring to St. Joseph the Worker.
On the GoFundMe page, Egan writes that he is hopeful that the work will be completed in August 2021. The site, he notes, is monitored 24/7 by surveillance cameras, which he hopes will discourage vandalism.
The fundraising has already exceeded its goal, bringing in $21,250. Excess funds will be donated to the St. Joseph Shrine Historic Renewal Fund. The money will go to support an ongoing effort to renovate many aspects of the over 100-year-old Detroit landmark church.
