Marcus Daly statue defaced in Butte
BUTTE, Mont. — Three Butte locals got together to create their own cleanup effort after someone defaced Montana Tech's statue of Marcus Daly, an Irish immigrant and one of Butte's Copper Kings.
"I love my city and my fellow Butte people," said Greg Oulman-Harper, one of the cleanup organizers. "It was a pleasure to clean up the statue, and I would do it again in a heartbeat if I had to."
The men found out about the graffiti after it was posted online and immediately felt they needed to do something.
“They were already out here cleaning before I got here,” said Alex Sexton, cleanup volunteer and owner of Next Generation Services. “It took at least over two hours.”
Supplies were donated by an Ace Hardware manager who wanted to help the cleanup project.
Sexton said after seeing how other cities had been filled with vandalism, they felt they needed to act quickly.
“You don't want it happening in your own community, especially when you’re raising a family, and you’ve got friends and loved ones here,” said Sexton.
The group received positive feedback online and in person, but all said they were doing it because they care about their community.
“I didn’t do this to get famous,” said Oulman-Harper, “I did it because kindness and generosity is something I take pride in. I am proud to be a Montanan and to live here in Butte.”
