For more than a decade, Cameron The Capitol Cat was simply part of the Nebraska State Capitol.

He was there on the limestone steps and grounds, greeting legislators and state employees on their way to work, posing for photographs with visitors, entertaining schoolchildren, and occasionally settling into the lap of someone willing to sit with him for a while. People came from across Nebraska and far beyond hoping they might be lucky enough to find him.

Over time, Cameron became something more than a cat who happened to spend his days at the Capitol. He became part of the place itself.

Now, a group of us hopes to make sure that a little bit of Cameron remains there for generations to come.

An Idea That Kept Coming Back

The idea didn't begin as a formal proposal or fundraising campaign.

Cameron's longtime guardian and roommate, Diana McGinnis, had mentioned to me that wouldn't it be nice if someday there could be a plaque or perhaps a small memorial to Cameron outside the Capitol. She wasn't alone. Over time, I heard similar thoughts from others who had come to know Cameron and understood just how much he had become part of the Capitol experience.

Then Cameron retired.

After more than a decade of daily visits, Cameron's time at the Capitol came to an unexpected end when Diana moved to an assisted living facility. The response was extraordinary.

People shared photographs and stories. They recalled finding Cameron on the steps, seeing him stretched out in the sun, or having him unexpectedly climb into a lap. Some traveled specifically to see him. What might have seemed like a small chapter in the life of the Capitol clearly meant much more to a remarkable number of people.

And with Cameron no longer there, the conversations about finding some permanent way to remember him became more frequent.

One of those conversations eventually became something more.

Scott Shafer, a fellow local photographer who works at the Nebraska State Capitol, had come to know and love Cameron over the years as well. Scott approached me with the idea of pursuing a permanent memorial and asked if I would be interested in helping.

I didn't have to think very long about my answer.

It was also Scott who suggested acclaimed sculptor Benjamin Victor as the artist we should consider for the project. Scott was familiar with Victor's work and his connection to several important public sculptures in Lincoln and Nebraska, and the more we looked at that work, the more appropriate the choice seemed.

From there, Scott and I met with Nebraska State Senators Anna Wishart and Jana Hughes, and what had been an idea began taking its first tentative steps toward becoming an actual project.

From an Idea to a Bronze Sculpture

Those early conversations eventually led to a much more ambitious possibility: a permanent, life-sized bronze sculpture of Cameron on the grounds of the Nebraska State Capitol.

I want to emphasize that everything remains in the initial stages.

A project involving the grounds of the Nebraska State Capitol requires review and approval from the appropriate state entities. The proposed sculpture remains contingent upon approval by the Nebraska Capitol Commission and all applicable state review processes. The conceptual design, location, installation details, fundraising requirements, timeline and other aspects of the project may evolve considerably as that process moves forward.

What we have today is a beginning.

But it is a beginning that has already generated an encouraging amount of support.

Senators Wishart and Hughes began reaching out to others, including fellow senators, the Governor and others who could help us better understand what would be required to make the idea possible. The response so far has been overwhelmingly supportive.

Senator Wishart described something about Cameron that I think explains why this idea resonates with so many people:

“I can’t remember the first day Cameron showed up in my life because, for so many of us, he became a constant fixture in our daily routines at the Capitol, as if he had been there forever, as old as the stone on which he often perched, waiting for a kind word and a warm lap. Cameron is a reminder of our shared humanity. No matter how difficult the issues we wrestled with inside the Capitol, when we stepped outside, we were all friends of Cameron. I hope a statue in his honor will continue this tradition for years to come.”

— Nebraska State Senator Anna Wishart

That phrase, "we were all friends of Cameron”—may say it better than anything else.

Senator Jana Hughes also remembers the simple joy Cameron brought to everyday life at the Capitol:

“I was happy to be asked to help with this as seeing Cameron daily brought a smile to my face. He was a part of the Capitol family for so many years and it will be nice to have a positive reminder of his 'years of service.'”

— Nebraska State Senator Jana Hughes

That is why Cameron eventually became known as the People's Cat.

Families looked for him. Children searched for him. State employees saw him as part of their routines. Tourists photographed him. Complete strangers found themselves talking to one another because there was a cat sitting between them.

His retirement made it apparent just how many people had formed their own small connection with him.

A permanent sculpture would give future visitors something of that experience. A child could sit beside Cameron. Someone could put a hand on his bronze head. Families could take photographs with him. And perhaps people who never had the opportunity to meet the real Cameron could understand a little of what made him such an unexpected part of Nebraska's Capitol.

A Grassroots Effort

The current fundraising goal for the proposed sculpture is approximately $37,500. Those funds would cover the creation, installation and related costs of the permanent life-sized bronze tribute.

This is entirely a grassroots effort funded through private donations and community support. No government funds or tax dollars of any kind will be used for the project.

Subject to final approval, all money raised will be used exclusively for the creation, installation and related costs of the sculpture.

Every contribution matters. This isn't intended to be a memorial funded by one person or organization. There is something fitting about the idea that Cameron's statue could ultimately be made possible by many of the same people who considered him their cat, too.

Cameron's Story—and Another Way I'm Helping

My own relationship with Cameron ultimately became the book Cameron The Capitol Cat: A Portrait in Light, Stone, and Fur.

What began with photographing Cameron eventually grew into something much larger: an attempt to preserve his personality, his relationship with the Capitol and the affection people developed for him.

Now I have an opportunity for the book to help preserve his legacy in another way. I have pledged to donate 100 percent of my profits from every copy of Cameron The Capitol Cat: A Portrait in Light, Stone, and Fur sold through October 2026 to the Cameron sculpture fund.

For anyone who would like to contribute to the statue project while also taking home Cameron's story, purchasing the book is another way to participate.

Help make a place for Cameron

My hope is that someday, years from now, a family visiting the Nebraska State Capitol will walk outside and find Cameron waiting there.

They may never have met the cat who once wandered those grounds. They may not know all of his stories. But perhaps a child will sit down beside him for a photograph, someone will reach out to touch his bronze head, and for just a moment Cameron will do what he did so naturally for all those years—bring people together.

If you would like to help us create a lasting place for Cameron at the Nebraska State Capitol, I hope you'll consider becoming part of this grassroots effort. Every contribution, no matter the size, brings us one step closer to making that possibility a reality.