GoFundMe Set Up For New Berlin Easter Island Head

NEW BERLIN, WI— Joe Stanke is not startled when strangers visit his New Berlin property to pose with the Easter Island Head statue which rests in his backyard. The statue, located at 15400 W. Cleveland Ave., has been a roadside attraction on for 40 years. It stands over 13 feet tall, and is constructed of concrete over an endoskeleton.

Unfortunately, due to its age, it now needs some restoration work over the next year. The concrete has delaminated and numerous fissures have opened up to weathering. Stanke, 84, can't go up a ladder to work on the statue.

A GoFundMe was set up to help the artist with the cost of repairs.

40 years ago..

Stanke has been enthralled with art since he first learned how to hold a pencil. He has a studio in his home with his artworks and has also been teaching art for 40 years, although he has taken a break due to the pandemic.

"I'm an artist not a sculptor. I'm a two-dimensional oil painter. But I thought it would be a cool thing to do," Stanke told Patch.

Stanke had always been fascinated by the enigma that surrounds the Moai of Easter Island.

"I jokingly told people on my block I wanted to be the first person with an Easter Island statue," he said.

Stanke asked his neighbors before building it and also went to City Hall, as he "wanted to do everything right." The artist didn't want to spend money and time and then find out it was for nothing.

"One neighbor was disappointed because he thought it would be a naked woman because I paint nudes," Stanke said.

He built the frame work of the statue in his garage. He had people from a weight building class he belonged to help move it to the existing location.

It has withstood 40 years of Wisconsin weather, some vandalism and other damages. A few years ago, little pieces started to chip off the statue, water got in and there were little hairline cracks, Stanke explained.

He found a person to do the repairs who lowered his rate because he was so fascinated and excited by the statue. However, the cost is still not cheap due to the statue needing to be painted and sealed.

Stanke expects the repairs to help the statue last up to 50 years.

Don't climb on it

After he dies, he hopes to leave the house to his son along with the statue.

"It has turned into a landmark," Stanke said.

The statue was listed on RoadsideAmerica.com. He mentioned a comment he read from a visitor who warned people about him yelling. Stanke remembered the incident the commenter was referring to.

He noticed three adults climbing on the statue and yelled out his window at them.

Stanke has often seen people stop and visit it over the decades. Many times people knock on the door to ask permission. He even had a wedding party ask to pose with the statue.

"They don't have to ask permission. I don't care, I just don't want it vandalized," he told Patch.

On warm nights, he would open his window and hear motorcycles stopping at 2 a.m.

"I'd see the motorcycle lights on the statue and point at it. They probably went to the bar and asked if anyone had seen it," he laughed.

Stanke said he loves the attention the statue gets.

Go Fund Me is a Patch promotional partner.