Kids & Family

Heart Sculpture To Be Erected at Mile 6 of Boston Marathon in Framingham

A week from tomorrow, more than 25,000 runners will participate in the 118th Boston Marathon. And early that Monday morning, April 21, a group of volunteers will erect a heart sculpture at Mile 6 of the marathon, at the intersection of Routes 135 and 126 in Downtown Framingham.

The public, outdoor art sculpture pays tribute to the Boston Marathon runners and Team Framingham, the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing and the Framingham Heart Study, said Nancie Handy, co-founder of F.Y.I. for the Arts.

Framingham Youth Initiative for the Arts (F.Y.I. for the Arts) is a non-profit organization. Its mission is to inspire and empower Framingham youth to discover their strengths and realize their potential through the arts. 

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Handy’s original design for the outdoor heart sculpture was brought to reality by students at Keefe Technical School in less than five weeks.

Keefe Tech instructors Pat Fogerty and Rick Costa, along with eight students cut out the eight metal ribs and welded the 3-D heart.

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Juniors Jeff Heino of Natick, Ian Heino of Natick, Jake Crandall of Hopkinton and Vinnie DeSimone of Framingham, did the majority of the work said Fogerty.

"This is the biggest project the department has undertaken," said Fogerty, who said he wasn't sure it could be done in time for this year's marathon but his students came in before school and stayed afterschool to get it completed on time.

"Jeff deserves to be singled out for his effort," said Fogerty.

Keefe Tech carpentry students Bill Norton and Izzy Assencoa helped build the box that holds the metal heart sculpture.

Inside the sculpture will be dozens upon dozens of red sneakers spray-painted red, explained Handy.

Today, April 13 from 2 to 4 p.m. there will be a community spray painting party at the Downtown Green, next to TD Bank in downtown Framingham. Sneakers, which will be placed into the heart, will get their final red color.

The metal heart, welded by the Keefe Tech students, will also be spray-painted red by Tempo Young Adult Resource Center in Framingham. 

Handy, and her F.Y.I. for the Arts co-founders Kylon Marie Colinet and Jennifer Krusinger Martin, wanted to thank the following for their support:

  • Framingham Salvage Co., who donated materials for the sculpture support and stand.
  • Lowes in Framingham, who donated all lumber for the sculpture base. 
  • Savers, who donated sneakers to be placed inside the heart, as well as red spray paint.
On Marathon Monday, come downtown and see the sculpture. Cheer on the runners, including Team Framingham, and F.Y.I. for the Arts Team Framingham runners Matt Warren and Cori Sage.

The Boston Marathon heart sculpture is the first in a series of public art sculptures F.Y.I. for the Arts is working on for the Town of Framingham. 

F.Y.I for the Arts is working to bring Hearts Across Framingham next year. The non-profit is working with Petroni Media Company and the Framingham Heart Association on the project.


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