A beloved statue was stolen from a Meadows Drive home in late fall, although the owner is still upset that the bronze bear was taken, she’s happy to report a replacement is on its way.
As we reported Park City Resident Judy Epstein’s beloved bronze bear Oliver was stolen at the beginning of October.
The 70 lb. statue was bolted to a rock at the end of a driveway on Meadows Drive, but thieves showed up in the middle of the night and absconded with the bear that had sat politely upright in the neighborhood for nearly a decade. The bronze bear, holding a black mug and wearing a friendly smile, was well known in the neighborhood and even had a Christmas tradition.
“Almost every Christmas, unbeknownst to us who it is, somebody always leaves a pound of coffee right by his cup. We don’t know who does it, but somebody every Christmas leaves him coffee.”
Epstein says that they’ve had no word on the bear’s whereabouts, but she’s kept a sense of humor during the search.
“I’m very very sad that it hasn’t been returned or found. You know people have commented to me that the FBI should have been called in to find our bear, half-jokingly of course.”
Epstein says that although Oliver is likely gone for good, they will have a replacement to sit at the end of their driveway this upcoming spring.
“We’re hopefully going to have another one in the spring. It will not be that bear but it will be a new bear that will look exactly like our old bear and bring joy to the rest of the neighborhood like it always did.”
