Hand-carved tribute honors city workers

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Amid quiet chatter echoing off the walls of Austin's City Hall, Rosalind Gardner peered through a glass case holding a wooden carving of her husband, Kenneth, and smiled.

"I'm really pleased with it," she said. "I'm proud that the city of Austin would honor them in such a way."

Kenneth Gardner was one of 42 City of Austin employees who died on the job over the past century. Austin's mayor and city manager dedicated a new memorial to them Friday. The group includes 20 police officers, nine firefighters, and employees from six other city departments.

Mayor Lee Leffingwell told the crowd in attendance, "They dedicated their lives in service to our city. For that, we will always be grateful."

City Manager Marc Ott shared a story about Jonathon Guyton, a solid waste services worker killed in 2008. Guyton had parked his trash truck on a hilly street, and stepped in front of it to pick up a container. The truck's brake gave way and it rolled over Guyton, killing him.

"He lost his life in the course of trying to serve us," said Ott, "trying to be part of the mission we all have as public servants: to provide the high quality of life that we all enjoy here in Austin."

Kenneth Gardner's trash truck collided with a tanker truck in October 2006. He didn't survive the crash. But a tiny image of him wearing a mask to ward off toxic fumes and sporting a Dallas Cowboys t-shirt under his work shirt now stands as a permanent fixture in the building housing the bulk of Austin's government.

"To be in City Hall forever is just amazing," said his wife. "He would be very proud of this."

The exhibit is as unique as the individuals it honors. Each employee is represented by a figurine carved from wood by retired police captain John Vasquez.

"God works in funny ways, because I never dreamed I would be up here having some of my work placed in Austin City Hall," he said. "70 years ago, a little boy was born. They were very poor - no TV, no radio, no nothing like that - but I did have a pocket knife."

Rosalind Gardner said, "I didn't know what to expect, but I think it's great. I think the detail is really great to be made out of wood, and it captures a side of the work that you wouldn't think of. It would have been quite normal just to put him in uniform."

Vasquez got a few chuckles from the crowd when he said, "After I completed all the police officers, I contacted the city manager's office to show them what I'd done, and they said, 'We're going to reward you - Here's 20 more figurines.'"

But it was obvious, the project held special meaning for him. He quoted a passage from Don Quixote and choked up a bit as he said, "The world will be better for this: that one man (or a woman), knocked down, beat up, stepped on, taxed to death... and covered with scars, still tried, with their last ounce of courage to reach the unreachable."