Snowshoe Thompson half way to getting a statue

GENOA - Legendary mailman Snowshoe Thompson will likely have a lifesize bronze statue in his honor in Genoa by next year.

The Greater Genoa Business Association has raised about half the money needed to cast the statue of Thompson, who crossed the Sierra in winter for 20 years to deliver mail from Placerville to Genoa. Thompson made his treks from 1856 to 1876.

The sale of bricks that will be engraved with donor names and other donations and fund-raising events have brought in $16,000. The statue itself will cost $30,000 but the association wants to raise $50,000 to cover costs for the base, landscaping and labor, said Sue Haugnes, the association secretary.

A short hike in Hope Valley a week ago raised $680. The Snowshoe Thompson Family Tour attracted about 15 to 20 people who made a three-mile hike on old Highway 89 and then visited the Snowshoe Thompson cave on Woodfords Avenue, said hike organizer Nina Vingo.

"It was not as big as we had hoped," Vingo said.

She said on the same day, Palm Sunday, 700 to 800 people in Norway made a hike in honor of Thompson, a Norwegian native. A Thompson cousin is sending a granite slab from Tinn, Norway, Thompson's native town, Haugnes said.

The granite slab will hold the bronze plaque at the base of the statue.

The Hope Valley hike had guide Frank Tortorich detailing stories about Thompson's life and adventures. The outing was supposed to be on skis or snowshoes but boots were enough to handle the minimal snow.

More fund-raisers are being planned, such as Snowshoe Thompson Days in Genoa at the end of June and a possible golf tournament or wine auction not yet scheduled.

After the Candy Dance in September, Haugnes hopes to have raised all $50,000.

Bricks that will engraved with the donor's name and become part of the statue base can be bought for $100 by calling Sue Haugnes at 782-5697 or by mail at the Greater Genoa Business Association, P.O. Box 226, Genoa, Nev. 89411.