Artist to Help Restore NE Iowa Cemetery Hit by Vandals

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — A group is working to restore the St. Michael Shrine at Mount Calvary Cemetery, along with other sites that have suffered from vandalism and neglect.

Donations are helping cover the estimated $4,000 restoration project of the shrine built in 1906. Artist Diego Velez is currently working on the sculpture in his studio in the former St. Theresa Church in La Motte.

Velez says he has had to scrape and sand the sculpture after noticing the paint was flaking off and chipping in several areas. He also has rebuilt a missing index finger. Postcards of the shrine sent in by a Dubuque resident are helping Velez restore the shrine to its former glory.

Cemetery employees also are collecting donations for work on several other sites.