Fourth eagle takes flight

By Roger Morris, Western News Publisher

Another eagle has landed.

Libby school teacher Todd Berget erected his fourth eagle sculpture Thursday night at Montana Machine along U.S. Highway 2 south of Libby.

This sculpture is slightly smaller than the first three works but it does have a wingspan, from wing tip to wing tip, of 21 feet.

³Because of metal prices today it is the most expensive one,² Berget said.

The steel and stainless sculpture depicts a bald eagle with its wings bent forward as if it were coming down to a perch.

Berget started working on the sculpture in early August and responded to a request to make one slightly smaller than the first three eagles, which had 40-foot wing spans.

Two of Berget¹s eagle sculptures are in public places in Libby. The first sculpture, made with longtime friend Darrien Greason of Bethel, Alaska, sits at the Libby Area Chamber of Commerce visitors center. A third sculpture is perched high above U.S. 2 where it intersects with Minnesota Avenue by the landscaped triangle. The second sculpture, a dramatic and fierce looking eagle — also made with Greason¹s help — is located at the entrance to a business near West Glacier.

³A few people asked me to work at a smaller scale,² Berget said.

That request, combined with metal prices and his time limitation school began, made it easier, he said.

³I talked before with Leroy Thom (owner of Montana Machine) about putting one of the previous eagles in front of his business,² Berget said. ³From the beginning, LeRoy has been like a sponsor of the sculptures helping us getting equipment and metals that we needed.²

For various reasons, as well as the logistics of moving one of the bigger sculptures down the highway to Thom¹s business, it never happened, that is until Thursday night.

Berget said it will remain there until it is sold.