By Tim Binnall
An Oregon community has rallied around a sizeable lake monster lawn ornament after a resident bashed the now-beloved 'creature' on social media. According to a local media report, the odd phenomenon began last week with an anonymous post in a Facebook group for the town of Milwaukie. Alongside a photo of the lawn ornament, an ornery resident wrote in all-caps "please put this in a more private place," lamenting that the three-piece statue was "rude" to other homeowners in the neighborhood because "we as well as guests have to see this everyday." In response to the blistering post, hundreds of group members showed support for the strange piece that has now come to be known as 'Messie the Milwauk-ness Monster.'
Since that fateful Facebook post calling out the 'creature,' the lawn ornament has captured the community's imagination, with residents flocking to the piece to celebrate the faux lake monster. Noticing the frenzy unfolding in Milwaukie, one enterprising local business even created t-shirts and other merchandise depicting the 'monster' that has quickly become an unofficial mascot for the town. Remarkably, while Messie was enjoying its fifteen minutes of fame, its owners were none the wiser, only realizing that the piece had become a phenomenon late last week when they were informed of the situation by a reporter.
"I just saw all these people stopping — because the dogs bark — and taking photos, getting out of their car," Bruce Joncas recalled, "but I didn't know anything about it." As for the piece itself, he explained that it was created by Portland artist Kassy Lopez and installed in the yard back in October, shortly after Joncas and his wife, Lisa Sheppard, moved to the community. Reflecting on the unexpected popularity of the lawn ornament, Sheppard mused to a local TV station, "you look at the face and you just think this is a kind creature and I just think the world right now needs more kindness and love."