Patsy Ann: her statue

Fifty years after Patsy Ann met her last ship, admirers led by June Dawson organized the Friends of Patsy Ann, raised funds, and commissioned a statue so she could once again greet visitors on the dock. Sculpted by Ann Burke Harris of Albuquerque, New Mexico, cast at the Shidoni Foundry in New Mexico, and made as a spirit piece with bits of hair and pets’ fur sent from around the world and pressed into the wax before the final brass casting, the sculpture reflected the sculptor’s Lakota and Cherokee tradition that such a work gives contributors’ spirits a measure of immortality. When it arrived in Juneau in 1992, Princess Cruises hosted a reception and unveiling aboard the Regal Princess, and Cy Peck Jr., an Alaska Native spiritual leader, blessed it in the name of harmony and friendship between animals and humans, praying that spirit would also guide human relations. Installed on the docks fifty years after Patsy Ann’s death, the bronze statue restored her as the Official Greeter of Juneau, Alaska, while proceeds from Friends of Patsy Ann activities were dedicated through the Patsy Ann Education and Scholarship Fund at the Gastineau Humane Society to foster understanding, respect, kindness, and compassion.

Juneau, Alaska · United States