Torch Lights Up the Night

United Way Torch

The United Way Torch burning brightly

Driving through downtown the fiery torch caught my eye. I didn't have time to stop, but after I finished my business for the evening I stopped by and shot this video. I thought at first that it was part of the downtown Christmas light display, but later when I looked up the torch online I discovered that it was lit this past September for the first time in five years. The torch was lit to draw attention to the current United Way campaign, and will stay lit until the end of the year when the fundraising campaign ends.

The Sculpture

Dario Bonucchi sculpted the abstract piece out of steel and aluminum, and the torch was dedicated in 1969. It sits in the median at Woodward and Jefferson right across from the Spirit of Detroit statue.