By TONY GUERRERO
Hays Post
Sculptor Pete Feltem was remembered by the Hays community during his celebration of life on Sunday.
The event was at the Ellis County Historical Society and began with a public reception featuring Felten exhibits and displays. Attendees visited and reflected on Felten’s impact on Kansas.
Brenda Meder, former Hays Arts Council director, opened the tribute by reading several statements on Felten's passing, including remarks from U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran and Gov. Laura Kelly, who awarded Felten with a legacy award shortly before his death.
"He was thoughtful, creative and technically very proficient," Meder said.
Felten died in February at Hays Medical Center, surrounded by family, friends and fellow artists. He was 92.
After graduating from Hays High School and serving four years in the U.S. Navy, Felten attended Fort Hays State University but left in 1957 to pursue sculpture, beginning a career that spanned almost 70 years.
His first commissioned work was a bust of Buffalo Bill Cody in 1961, placed in front of the Hays Public Library. His most prominent sculptures are the four eight-foot-tall limestone portraits of Amelia Earhart, William Allen White, Arthur Capper and Dwight Eisenhower in the Kansas Capitol rotunda.
Ellis County alone has about 30 public Felten sculptures. Hundreds of other works are in public and private collections across Kansas and beyond.
Bruce Burkholder, a close friend of Felten and a fellow artist, shared how he first met Felten and recounted a time when Felten intervened during his suicide attempt.
"In 1985, I was going through a personal time in my life. ... Pete came by and saw me with razorblades. He saved my life, and I want to make sure I give back to him," Burkholder said.
Jean Stramel, a friend and supporter of Felten’s work, described him as a historian and documentarian who photographed buildings, churches, schools, animals and events in Hays.
"He has photo albums full of all these pictures. These will either go to the Historical Society or into his archives," she said. "The process of sorting out his house has begun."
Stramel said Felten kept 66 photo albums dating from 1956 to 2018, some documenting trips he took, including one to California. She also shared how she met Felten and became involved in Hays’ local art scene.
Michael Jilg, a fellow Hays artist and friend, acknowledged Felten’s impact on the community and said he hopes the community will give back in return.
Contributions to the Felten Legacy Fund are accepted through the Heartland Community Foundation. They will be used to turn Felten's Stone Gallery, 107 1/2 Sixth St., and workshop into a museum.
Upon his death, his gallery and workshop were willed to the Ellis County Historical Society.
Donate online here https://tinyurl.com/ywfpju6n or mail your gift to PO Box 1673, Hays, KS, 67601. Please note “Pete Felten Legacy Fund” in the memo or Pete Felten Memorial.
Attendees were also welcome to an open house at the gallery and Felten's studio.
SEE RELATED STORY: A legacy carved in stone: Hays community remembers artist Pete Felten