Residents of the 600 block of Wharton Street have had their spirits lifted with the recent resurrection of a beloved statue of Jesus.
The figure, located inside a small community garden, was damaged nearly a year ago by vandals who also made off with two smaller statues.
Neighbors were horrified to find that the criminals had virtually decapitated the Jesus statue after tossing a large boulder at it.
"I came out at 7 a.m. to find the head on the ground, laying next to the fence," said Donna Scherer, who lives directly across the street from the garden. "It was terrible. It looks like [the vandals] smashed the face over and over again because the nose and chin were badly damaged."
The crime echoed others at area churches where religious monuments were also targeted.
Hoping to rid residents of their sadness over the statues, neighbor Jim Hudson enlisted the help of a friend to reassemble and repair the figure of Jesus.
The friend, Donald Hinkle, is an office-building manager on Columbus Boulevard who doubles as an all-around handyman. Hinkle has donated generous portions of his time to get the statue back together and, as of last week, back on its feet.
Scherer said many neighbors were overjoyed to see the statue back up again, although some work still has to be done on the nose and chin.
"What happened here was just terrible, but the main message to get across to South Philadelphia is that we still care," Hudson said.
Scherer said that another resident, Richard Bishop — the original owner of the statues — plans to replace the two smaller statues of angels that the intruders stole.
Scherer and Hudson hope to add solar lights to the garden, both to illuminate the statues and to remind potential vandals that the neighbors are keeping an eye out.
"The lights would be a big help," Scherer said. "If we add lights, we could eventually add a camera, which would make anyone think twice before trying something like this again."
For now, neighbors of this little garden are rejoicing in the fact that their statue — their symbol of hope and comfort in troubled times — is back in their lives again.
