BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) – The City of Beckley will be building a statue of one of it’s most famous sons.
The Beckley Intermodal Gateway will be the site of a new Bill Withers statue. The statue is currently being sculpted by Pastor Fredrick Hightower of West Virginia State University.
Beckley Mayor Rob Rappold said the statue should be up in Beckley soon, with the time frame ranging from four months to this time next year.
“You know, I’ve never heard an unkind word about Bill Withers,” said Mayor Rappold. “Those who knew him and actually went to Stratton high school at the time, before integration, speak so highly of him. Not only as a musician, but as a great human being.”
When Hightower finishes the clay sculpture, it will be cast in bronze and unveiled at the Beckley Intermodal Gateway. Mayor Rappold said he is hopeful Withers’ family will be able to fly in from California to attend the statue’s unveiling.