SPRING GLEN, Utah -- Work is nearing completion on a monument for those who died in the Crandall Canyon mine disaster last year.

Sculptor Karen Jobe Templeton has been working on clay relief faces of the nine who died in August -- six miners trapped after the mine collapsed and three who died trying to rescue them.

The sculptures are expected to be delivered to a Lehi foundry this week where they'll be cast in bronze and then mounted on a curved wall. The memorial will be placed along the highway between Huntington and the mine, not far from the junior high where friends and families gathered as the disaster unfolded.

Templeton said she worked hard to capture the essence of the men in her sculptures. That has meant connecting with family members.

"Every one of the families has these stories that come from the soul," she said. Some things she has heard "have never been shared anywhere, just sweet, personal things."

Families came to watch the process. Some stayed quiet and others shared stories.

"It's like a door opens up and they tell you everything they knew about (the victim). That's what a memorial is supposed to be," Templeton said.

It's important that family members were involved, said Wendy Black, whose husband, Dale, died during the rescue attempt.

"It's not just that Karen's such a good artist. It's the way she comes across with her mannerisms," Black said. "She's the sweetest woman I've ever met. She wants our opinions and she lets you touch (the figures). That's important."

The bronzed faces of the nine will be set out in relief from the concrete wall. Each family will also receive a bust of their own.

"The expressions in their eyes and the looks on their faces were amazing," said Huntington Mayor Hilary Gordon. "She didn't just capture the outside image. She captured what I would call their inner soul, that sense of what made them a person."

The memorial -- 16 feet wide and six feet tall -- will be called "Heroes Among Us."