As this aviator mourns loss of Amelia Earhart statue, there's a $25K offer for justice

Artists and aviators alike say they remain stunned by the theft of a statue depicting Amelia Earhart in Harbour Grace, while a Newfoundland and Labrador company is offering up a big reward to bring the culprit to justice.

Kim Winsor, an airline pilot originally from the province and co-chair of the First Canadian Chapter of the 99's International Organization of Women Pilots, says the group is feeling tremendous loss.

"It's hard to talk about it without getting choked up," Winsor told CBC Radio's On the Go.

"Devastating. Speechless. So sad. You know, the Town of Harbour Grace has done such a fantastic job preserving aviation history in Newfoundland and the history of Amelia Earhart, and recognizing what a pioneer she was in aviation. So it's heartbreaking."

Winsor and members of the 99's visited the town in 2022 to celebrate the 90th anniversary of Earhart's historic transatlantic flight. Earhart was the group's first president.

The bronze statue of her likeness, erected in 2007, was stolen in the early hours of Thursday.

Morgan MacDonald, a Newfoundland sculptor known for his work with bronze, told CBC News he was horrified by the theft. He trained alongside the statue's sculptor, Luben Boykov.

"I was just shocked," MacDonald said. "The thing that saddens me the most is how, you know, an artist's original work of art is now possibly destroyed and lost forever."

MacDonald says another statue could be crafted, but added it would likely take hundreds of thousands of dollars and ultimately wouldn't be the same.

"There are many statues throughout the world of Amelia Earhart, and [Hadfield] said of the statues that she has seen, this was the nicest one she had ever seen," Winsor said.

$10k reward offered for thief's conviction

Meanwhile, a St. John's-based metal recycling company says it's offering a hefty reward for justice.

"We are offering a $10,000 reward to the arrest and conviction of the person or people who are responsible for this," said Don Drew, operations manager of Newco Metal and Auto Recycling.

"We want them caught. We want them convicted, we want them to serve time for what they have done. This is a hit on this entire province… we're proud of our history. And in this one action, it has affected all of that."

Rewards have now reached $25,000 in total, including many anonymous donations from a group called Friends of Amelia.

Drew says Newco Metal often works with police in theft cases, like when car parts are stolen, and says scrapyards across the province are on high alert — given they're some of the only places bronze could be melted for profit. 

He says that hurts the reputation of the industry, and its value as scrap — between $2 and $3 per pound — pales in comparison to the statue's significance.

"We're watching for anything that comes in that resembles a statue or those pieces of bronze or large amounts of bronze," he said.

If the thief or thieves aren't found, Drew says the $10,000 would be donated to the town toward a new statue.

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