Life-size carving of Jackie unveiled in Fawnskin as community mourns beloved bald eagle

A life-size wooden carving of Jackie, the Big Bear bald eagle who captured a global audience through live-stream cameras above her nest, was unveiled Saturday, Sept. 26, at Fawnskin Freedom Park — the newly renamed gathering spot on the north shore where tributes to the beloved bird have become a recurring community ritual. The event drew emotional crowds and marked the latest in an informal series of memorials that have sprung up since Jackie's death.^[1]

Editor's note: The artifact truncates the event date to "Saturday, Sept." — Sept. 26 is inferred from the artifact's observed date of Sept. 27, 2026 (a Sunday). Reporters should confirm the exact date before publication.

Two memorial movements, one shared grief

The Fawnskin park at the center of Saturday's ceremony was formerly called Fawn Park. Its owner, Mike Wayman, renamed it Fawnskin Freedom Park during the Sept. 26 event and also incorporated a piece of an I-beam from the 9/11 Twin Towers into the dedication — tying Jackie's memory to a symbol of national resilience.^[1]

The carving itself stopped more than a few visitors in their tracks. Mae Schweibinz and Yvonne Iberra, both from Big Bear City, were photographed embracing in front of a photo banner featuring Jackie alongside her longtime partner Shadow — an image that captured the depth of feeling many valley residents have for a bird they watched raise eaglets season after season from their living rooms and phones.^[1]

Saturday's unveiling was not Wayman's first tribute. He held a similar memorial ceremony on Sept. 5 that drew hundreds of well-wishers to pay their respects.^[1] Those two events, however, are independent of the nonprofit community that made Jackie famous in the first place: Wayman's gatherings are not affiliated with Friends of Big Bear Valley, the organization that installed and continues to operate the live-feed nest cameras.^[1]

Friends of Big Bear Valley has not publicly commented on the independent memorials or the park renaming, and their perspective on the growing constellation of tributes organized outside their own network was not available for this story.

What's next: the Oct. 3 tribute

A separate, larger tribute is in the works for Saturday, Oct. 3, organized by Visit Big Bear, Friends of Big Bear Valley, and other partner groups.^[1] That event is expected to bring together the organizations most directly involved in Jackie's care and public following — offering the valley a second, distinct moment to honor her together. Details on location and timing for the Oct. 3 event were not included in available reports; check the Friends of Big Bear Valley and Visit Big Bear channels for updates as the date approaches.