The Janeway Statue

HISTORY 

In the show Star Trek: Voyager there was a character named Captain Kathryn Janeway. Jerry Taylor is a writer on the show and was an IU student. She gave Captain Janeway a backstory and she made Janeway born in Bloomington. Marco Arnaudo, an IU professor, had the idea to build it. He discussed his idea for the statue on Facebook. Mary Beth Aich got inspired on a cruise. She told people she was from "Bloomington, future birthplace of Captain Janeway." The first brainstormed idea was a bench with info for Captain Janeway, but they changed to a statue idea. Before they started to build the statue, they did a crowdfunding campaign. It took 9 months to complete the statue. Kate Mulgrew, the actress who played Captain Janeway, attended the opening ceremony virtually. It ultimately cost $57,000. The team that built it is Mary Beth Aich, Professor Marco, Peter Kazmarczyk, and Laura Martinez. They completed it on October 20, 2020. 

ROLE IN THE COMMUNITY

The Janeway Collective helps encourage people to learn STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) and follows the core humanitarian values of Starfleet. The creators of the statue felt that Captain Janeway inspires young women to go into science.

They worked with local businesses to build the statue, such as Sincerus Bronze, Accent Limestone, Poynter Sheet Metal, and so many more. The base of the statute came from Bloomington itself and was carved in Spencer. You can also find some of Jeri Taylor’s original writing and plans for the show at the IU Lilly Library. The Janeway Collective also works with the Wonderlab partially by the Wonderlab letting them install it on their property..  They rely on the community to stay funded. You can find their website here: https://janewaycollective.com/the-statue/. You can donate or even buy merchandise. You can also find their social media here https://www.facebook.com/groups/2204195502973640. Thanks for reading!