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The bright green beacon that for decades shined atop the Duluth Bethel, guiding people into the center for healing and sailors into the Duluth harbor for safety, is shining once again.
Staff, the Board of Directors and community supporters of the Bethel, a center for substance use disorder treatment and community corrections alternatives, have re-lit the beacon on the Bethel building, 23 Mesaba Ave., to celebrate renewal, hope and healing. The Bethel plans to keep the beacon lit, celebrating the hope and healing that continues inside the 142-year-old organization, one of the region’s oldest nonprofits.
“The Bethel has helped people repair damaged lives and once again become contributing members of society,†said Bethel Executive Director Dennis Cummings. “We have been a bright light for individuals and for our region. We want to re-light the beacon as a message that hope and healing continues here.â€
No one knows specifically when the beacon went out or why. Cummings, who has worked at the Bethel for 30 years and became Executive Director two years ago, said his best guess is that the light went out about 50 years ago and simply never was repaired.
The Board of Directors and staff decided to re-light the beacon, which glows a bluish green and can be seen for miles, as part of an effort to raise the public profile of the Bethel. Before advances in radar and other navigational tools, ships on Lake Superior would use the distinctive green light of the beacon to help navigate safely into the Duluth harbor.
“The beacon was part of the Bethel and part of our community for years,†Cummings said. “We’re excited to bring it back and to tell our region that we are here to help guide people to a brighter future.â€
About 90 men and women live temporarily at the Bethel at any given time. About half receive treatment for substance use disorder, including alcoholism and drug abuse. The rest participate in work-release and other community corrections programs that help former offenders make the transition from jail or prison back into society, often while employed. Some programs are designed as community-based alternatives to incarceration. The Bethel also offers outpatient treatment for substance use disorder as well as services.
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Photo courtesy of Duluth News Tribune
