400-pound ice carvings honor frontline angels

What better way to bring holiday magic to health care workers in Will County than create some angels right in front of their eyes?

That was the thought of Michael McGreal, chair of the Joliet Junior College culinary arts program, when he contacted AMITA health Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet and Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox

McGreal was hoping the hospitals would let him carve angels out of ice at the employee entrances so staff could see his work as they went in and out of the hospital.

But when he learned that was impractical, he went to plan B: bring the already carved 400-pound angels to the hospitals and set them up at the employee entrances.

So that’s exactly what McGreal did on Monday with his wife Kristy. He hopes the beauty of the ice angels inspires the hospital workers, whom he realizes must be feeling weary right now as they work hard to keep people safe, he said.

“The angel is always a symbol of hope,” McGreal said. “Even though we’re going through hardships, it’s so good to see so many people pulling together.”

How long will the angels remain in place? Well, that depends quite a bit on the weather, McGreal said. The two biggest enemies of ice carvings are sun and rain, he said.

McGreal said he’s seen ice carvings dissolve in the time it takes to eat dinner if the elements aren’t favorable for the carving. But then he’s also seen some ice sculptures last for two weeks.

“Mother Nature is a big factor in it,” he said.

What inspired him to share the ice sculptures? It’s the nature of hospitality industry “to give back,” McGreal said.

“Food is nourishment,” McGreal said. “And culinary and food is about getting together in the good times in people’s lives – weddings or first dates with food and drinks – or the bad times, such as the luncheons when someone passes away. Even though the holidays will be very different for many people - when even our industry has suffered from so many closures - once this passes, the restaurant industry will be waiting to welcome people.”

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_2LK1527.JPG Debra Robbins, Director of Marketing Silver Cross Hospital takes a photo of Chef Michael McGreal, head of the culinary arts department at Joliet Junior College with his wife Kristy after they setup the 400 pound ice angel at the employee entrances at Silver Cross on Monday, December, 21, 2020, at Silver Cross Hospital,New Lenox, III. (Larry W. Kane for Shaw Media/The Herald-News)