ODESSA, Texas — The memories of the tragic day of August 31, 2019 in Odessa are engraved into the lives of several West Texans. Seven people were killed and nearly two dozen others were injured.
After five years, the Bright Star Memorial has been unveiled. The sculptor behind it, Jim Sanborn, wanted the piece to remember the names of those who lost their lives while also engraving messages from victims' loved ones and those who survived.
"It was one of the saddest periods of my life I have to say," Sanborn said. "It was nothing like the other 50 projects I've done [...] because I relived those moments. I read them over and over again. Every phrase, every sentence, every word to make sure it was right."
The Bright Star Memorial stands nearly 10 feet tall. The cylinder is made out of bronze and inside it sits a pinpoint light source to project the nearly 1,000 letters that have been etched into it. During nightfall, the letters are projected to the surrounded landscape.
Sanborn said his vision to the names of those who died as well as letters from their loved ones came five years ago upon agreeing to the commission. However, he quickly learned how difficult it would be to obtain quotes, especially while being based out of Maryland.
"It did take five years from the inception of the idea to the completion of the piece, but five years is an important amount of time [...] and really a couple of years is an important amount of time because the victims' families have to deal with that very acutely in the beginning," Sanborn said. "And so we did not want to bring all of this up and involve these people in something which brought all these negative memories up again so soon. So having it develop over a number of years was far preferable to doing it quickly."
Sanborn said he decided it was important to have the person reaching out to the victims' families be someone who knew them and lived closely. Ultimately partnering with someone from the Odessa Chamber of Commerce who knew the families personally.
This is Sanborn's second time creating a memorial throughout his more than 35 years of being a sculptor.
"I know other memorials are put up for various difficult events, but I'm not sure how many have been installed for mass shootings," Sanborn said. "I think it's important that these are things that will hopefully get the message out that this somehow has to stop."
The Bright Star Memorial sits atop a hill on a circular amphitheater at the University of Texas Permian Basin. Initially, it was going to be placed at a local park.
"I want to thank Randy Hammett with the Arts Council and the Odessa Chamber of Commerce for their valiant efforts in getting all of the information to me. I know it must have been hard, but I really appreciate it," Sanborn said. "I hope people can appreciate the effort, but most importantly, remember the people who passed and the people who were injured, that's very important to me."