Destruction won't bring us down

Our call to action is simple: consider how you can help with continuing TRP!

As many in the UMBC community know, the "Minds Unleashed" statue was stolen and destroyed during the last week of October. This sad and unfortunate event leaves only two of the Retriever statues remaining on campus. During the planning process of the project, we considered multiple ways to prevent the statues from being vandalized by graffiti; however, we did not anticipate that the statues would be stolen from the bases. We took as many preventative measures as possible to ensure that they could not be easily removed, but someone was determined to steal the statue and succeeded.

Vandalism is destructive not only to public art, but also to the community's perception of the value and worth of physical property. UMBC is a beautiful campus and all of its buildings, benches, pathways, and statues deserve to be respected. We are very disappointed that the statue was stolen. We are asking the UMBC community to work together to find a solution to this issue. The "Minds Unleashed" statue is broken and cannot be replaced on its pedestal outside of the AOK library.

The future of The Retriever Project remains in the hands of the UMBC community. TRP is a legacy to leave on campus as well as an opportunity to demonstrate our mascot, values, and university spirit through public art. We know that it will live on through the years and show what it means to be a UMBC Retriever.