'Everything felt so right' at K9 Bane's bronze statue dedication in St. Francis

Erik S. Hanley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·4 min read

“Do not fear the darkness for I am by your side.”

Inspired by Psalm 23, this motto has deeper meaning for St. Francis Detective Holly McManus. She’s been helping her former pawed partner, K9 Bane, battle degenerative myelopathy, a nerve disorder similar to ALS in humans.

While the disease is terminal, Bane, who turns 12 in August, has been granted a form of immortality with the dedication of a bronze statue in his likeness at the St. Francis Civic Center on July 7.

“He will always be there, watching over the city,” McManus said.

Not just for Bane, the statue is also to support all current and future St. Francis K9s; current St. Francis Police K9 Riggs' name is engraved onto the granite base below Bane's, with room for more in the future.

McManus' motto is engraved on the side.

“I have my own faith; I don’t push that on anybody else,” she said. “But what I wanted was something literal, too. Bane and I were on third shift for five years together so in the darkness he was with me all the time.”

Bane retired from the St. Francis Police Department in 2020

Bane has been at McManus’ side for over nine years. Many of those years were on patrol, but Bane retired in 2020 and shortly thereafter was diagnosed with DM.

It’s been over 400 days since the diagnosis, and each day has been marked by a post by McManus on the K9 Bane Facebook page which has over 10,000 followers from around the world.

Many of those followers came to celebrate their favorite police pup in person, with McManus aware of visitors from Massachusetts, Colorado and Illinois.

After a few technical hiccups, McManus was able to livestream the event on the K9 Bane page.

“I had to get it going because I had a couple people in Australia who set their alarms for 6 a.m.,” she said. “People from all over the world were tuning in to watch it.”

More: This 8-year-old Oak Creek police officer will be retiring this month

Bringing Bane’s statue to St. Francis

St. Francis Police Detective Holly McManus and her retired K9 partner Bane, pose for photos with sculptor Kristen Douglas-Seitz and the newly unveiled K9 Legacy Statue at St. Francis Police Department on Friday, July 7, 2023. The life-size bronze statue of retired K9 Officer Bane honors his life and service along with former and future K9 Officers serving the community.

Kristen Douglas-Seitz, of the The Painted Feather LLC in Washington State, sculpted the statue. She drove the completed bronze Bane from a foundry in Texas to Wisconsin in a minivan with her husband a few days before the dedication.

McManus first saw the bronze statue on July 5.

“I could’ve cried,” she said. “I was amazed.”

There was a sizing issue with the granite base, but it was quickly rectified, McManus said, and the statue was installed the day before the dedication.

Bane seemed to enjoy himself at the event, getting countless pictures taken and splitting his time between a bed outside and inside his air-conditioned former squad car.

“I was completely at ease through the whole ceremony, everything felt so right,” McManus said, adding the statue is “a remarkable piece of art.”

She thanked the community for its generosity in donating to fund the statue and to cover some of Bane’s medical bills through campaigns like the K9 Bane Hero Fund.

McManus sees her partner memorialized every morning

Coming to work a couple days after the dedication, McManus rerouted herself to be sure to drive past the statue.

“It just stops me, I feel so good, I feel so accomplished,” she said. “Every time I look at it, I’m just humbled.”

While it felt like a heavy weight was lifted from her shoulders getting the statue installed, McManus was worried about how Bane would be after the dedication.

“I was worried about him because when people and animals are on a journey, and they reach that purpose, they are kind of more at peace,” she said July 10. “Obviously Bane’s not done with his journey because he was barking at the neighbor’s dogs this morning.”

Contact Erik S. Hanley at erik.hanley@jrn.com. Like his Facebook page, The Redheadliner, and follow him on Twitter @Redheadliner.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

DOWNLOAD THE APP: Get the latest news, sports and more

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: St. Francis Police Department unveils K9 Bane statue