Ice sculpture damage from the Center for Suicide Awareness sculpture, part of Appleton's annual "Avenue of Ice." (Courtesy: Center for Suicide Awareness)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Appleton Downtown, Inc. will make a donation to the Kaukauna-based Center for Suicide Awareness after its Avenue of Ice sculpture was damaged.
The sculpture, which depicted two hands forming a heart, was destroyed over the weekend when a man allegedly picked it up and threw it to the ground.
CSA posted about the incident on Facebook, saying, “We are literally heartbroken.” The post garnered thousands of reactions, comments and shares from community members.
“We have just been overwhelmed and grateful for the support,” said CSA founder and executive director Barb Bigalke. “Appleton Downtown was gracious to say that they’re going to do a donation, which we never expected or anticipated. That is wonderful.”
The suspect, who was caught on camera, turned himself in after police released surveillance images on social media. The Appleton Police Department says the incident is still under investigation, and potential citations or criminal charges may be forthcoming.
Bigalke admitted the motive for the vandalism is still not fully clear, but she believes it may have been targeted.
“From learning from the footage, it seemed like the person looked at our sculpture and broke it and took pictures with others,” said Bigalke. “So, that’s sort of a question. I guess we won’t probably know until the investigation is done.”
Krystal Kleer Ice Sculptures, LLC tried to restore the heart Tuesday, but they were unable to fix it. Krystal Kleer crafted all 26 of the sculptures in the annual Avenue of Ice event in downtown Appleton.
The amount of the donation that will be given to the Center for Suicide Awareness from Appleton Downtown, Inc. has not been decided, officials said.
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