By Peggy Iba
Dawson County Healthy Communities Coalition
The Community Champion for February is an author and an artist and a philanthropist of her time and talents.
Pamela Harr and Harvey Rattey of Bridger Bronze generously donated bronzes for years to Glendive Medical Center and other organizations for raffles and auction fundraisers.
Pamela Harr has expanded the size and scope of her artistic talent and is making Glendive her legacy city. As a community we are blessed she is sharing her work locally starting with the lifesize bronze soldier outside the Eastern Montana Veteran’s Home called To the Color. It was dedicated Veteran’s Day 2016. This is a slightly different version than Taps at the Eastern Montana Veterans Memorial in Fort Peck, which is an inspiring salute to our veterans.
This year Harr donated the bronze Waiting for the School Bus – three dogs by the mailbox – to Glendive school. It is located at the DCHS front entrance on Merrill Avenue.
Harr offered her artistic talents when she got the Greater Glendive Community Foundation newsletter saying we would work with the family to honor Ty Milne with the memorials received. Ty was, a former president of GGCF. I put Pam in touch with Ty’s wife, Tammy. Her kids came up with Born to Hunt, a boy teaching his dog to retrieve. The foundry fee and foam enlargement for the lifesize bronze were $35,000 which seemed insurmountable. But Pam made miniatures to sell with Bridger Bronze’s portion of each one donated to the lifesize bronze. Born to Hunt is in the triangle park by the football field, and includes details like Ty’s actual tennis shoes and Belle’s collar. Thanks to all who purchased bronzes or donated to make this happen in just seven months and also thanks to Fisher Sand and Gravel for installing.
Pam’s latest gift to the citizens of Glendive is downtown in Gazebo Memorial Park or Our Park called The Price. Narcissa Whitman was the first white woman to cross the Rockies founding the Whitman Mission with her husband in 1836. This bronze shows Narcissa’s grief after her only child drowned at age two. Pamela Harr dedicated this bronze to all who have lost a child.
We thank Pam for this legacy of statues promoting the arts and tourism in our community. Thanks too for her book Deeper than Memory to help understand Alzheimers through compassionate stories of caring for Harvey Rattey.
Pam has more wonderful projects in store for Glendive. We proudly salute her as February’s Community Champion.