The Story Behind the Statue for Governor Judy Martz
Written by Joy Novota, LCRW President
During the 2019 Montana Legislative Session, Senator Albert Olszewski stepped forward with discussion to honor Montana’s first woman Governor–and a Republican–with the idea of a bronze statue to be placed in the State Capitol. The 2019 Legislature passed the bill, and the ‘sculpture committee’ approved a caveat that $100,000 needed to be raised before the end of 2020. Knowing the majority of the funds were raised, the committee could then begin planning the project. Based on prior estimates by a variety of artists and sculptors, this amount also allowed for a starting base of a final budget which will probably be around $163,000. The senate bill states the project must be fully completed with the statue installed in the Capitol no later than October 2024. Many admirers and fans of Judy Martz were delighted to see this proposal brought to public awareness, and then the work began in raising the initial $100,000.
Just a few weeks before the pandemic changed the lives of all, the Lewis and Clark Republican Women’s club (LCRW) formed a committee of three to work on a fundraiser. Gilda Clancy, Donna Elford and Ruth Rater were appointed (by President Joy Novota) to represent the LCRW in determining various elements of fundraising ‘for Judy.’ The women took on the challenge with great zeal and began researching and outlining possibilities of helping with funding for the statue.
As the momentum began to build with some dollars coming into the fund via members of the tri-county women’s club, the Big 3 (Gilda, Donna and Ruth) also challenged all the other Montana Republican women’s clubs to participate and/or out raise the efforts of the Helena based organization. Each club could pursue a fundraising effort if they so chose.
After due consideration, the Big 3 announced a “Downstairs at the Brewhouse – Tip a Cup to Judy” fundraiser in Helena on August 4, 2020. Due to Covid19 restrictions as to the size of the crowd, everyone attending participated with excitement and hopes of adding more dollars to the bottom-line! The special evening brought in several thousand dollars more than anticipated.
As the work continued in pushing forth the extra dollars to be added to the $100,000 goal, an special surprise was presented. The husband of a former LCRW Club president who passed away a few years ago to cancer, honored his wife by matching the initial goal of $2000 for the statue with $2000. Between personal donations, the Brewhouse event plus the generosity of many others, the LCRW went miles beyond their expectations with a final amount of $11,700 raised for the Martz statue! The LCRW definitely made a difference – particularly when one considers over 10% of the $100,000 was raised by one small Republican club in the State of Montana! Thank-you for your faith in the project and the dream of a beautiful statue to capture the essence of Governor Judy Martz! If you would like to support the Martz Statue Fund you can send a check to: Martz Statue Fund, c/o Montana History Center, POB 1585, Helena, MT 59624-1585, or online www.GovMartzStatue.org.
Meet Judy Martz – Radiant, loving, kind-hearted, servant of the people, wife, mother and friend. Judy was born into a blue-collar family. Her Dad was a rancher/miner, and her mother was a cook, liquor-store clerk and motel maid. Judy was named Miss Rodeo Montana in 1962, and she was a speed skater in the 1964 Winter Games. She and Harry were married in 1965, and they co-owned and operated a garbage disposal service in her hometown of Butte. They had two children – one daughter and one son. Judy entered politics as a field representative for Senator Conrad Burns from 1989 – 1995. After her first term as Lt. Governor alongside Governor Marc Racicot, in 2001 Judy became Montana’s first female governor. Her first legislative session resulted in the single largest increase in the education budget in Montana history as well as tax cuts intended to stimulate the stagnant state economy. After making the decision not to run for re-election in 2004, Judy was named chair of Montanans for Judge Roberts (Chief Justice Nominee). Although she never ran for another office, she stated she’d have to ‘pray long & hard’ to make that decision. She sat on various boards, remaining active in all areas of life until she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She fought the good fight for nearly three years before the disease took her from us at the age of 74 (October 30, 2017). Judy was rarely seen without a pin of the humble turtle on her lapel and would often invoke a saying that embodied her fearlessness and courage: ‘Behold the turtle, he only moves forward when he sticks his neck out.’