Salisbury bids farewell to Beacon of Hope monument

SALISBURY, Md. – For two and a half months, the Beacon of Hope stood tall on the plaza, reminding people of the significant mark Harriet Tubman left on the Eastern Shore.

Now, it’s getting ready to embark on its next journey.

“I’m sad that it’s leaving this area, because it has been doing so much for the area, but I hope that the energy stays and carries on,” said Tubman’s descendant, Tonet Cuffee.

The Beacon of Hope is headed to Rahway, New Jersey, where it will stay in the community for one month. Director of Vehicles for Change, Shawna Kearsley, said the statue will help educate the public on the countless journeys that Tubman took to freedom.

“I think our community attached to that story,” Kearsley said. “I think there were a lot of joyful people who saw the Beacon and heard about the Beacon and are now curious.”

Cuffee carries her ancestor’s legacy and shares it through poetry. Celebrating the end of monument’s journey in Salisbury, she added her poem to the Beacon of Hope’s capsule, for those in the statue’s new community to read.

“I just try to do what she would have done,” Cuffee said. “I can never measure up to what she has done, but I try to do my part, because I believe that’s what she wants us to do.”

As the community bids the Beacon of Hope a farewell, Kearsley said the monument’s journey across the US will help continue Tubman’s legacy.

“You can use the lessons of history to create new things, to adjust the thing that you’re working on right now, and it’s just fun,” Kearsley said.