Jackie was not just another bald eagle.

Born in Big Bear Valley in 2012, Jackie was the first documented bald eagle chick hatched in the valley. She spent her life there and, alongside her mate Shadow, became an extraordinary ambassador for bald eagles and wildlife conservation. Through the Big Bear Bald Eagle Nest Cam, millions of people around the world came to know and love her.

I was one of them.

I watched Jackie for years. I watched her build and defend her nest, protect her eggs through brutal winter storms, raise eaglets, experience heartbreaking losses, and demonstrate the remarkable intelligence, resilience and individuality of bald eagles. Like countless people around the world, I learned about these magnificent birds because Jackie allowed us a window into her wild life.

Following Jackie’s death, authorities announced that after her necropsy her remains are expected to be transferred to the National Eagle Repository.

I understand that the Repository serves an established purpose under federal law. This petition is not an attack on the Repository or the communities it serves.

It is a plea to consider Jackie individually before anything irreversible happens to her remains.

Jackie’s circumstances are extraordinary. Her entire documented life is intertwined with Big Bear Valley, and her educational and conservation legacy reaches around the world.

I am asking the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Eagle Repository, Friends of Big Bear Valley, and other responsible officials and organizations to PAUSE any irreversible disposition of Jackie’s remains while every lawful alternative is explored.

Specifically, we ask officials to determine whether Jackie can be preserved intact and returned to Big Bear Valley through an appropriate educational, scientific, conservation or memorial arrangement involving a legally eligible institution.

Imagine a permanent educational exhibit in Big Bear Valley where future generations could learn Jackie’s story: the recovery and protection of bald eagles, their biology and behavior, the Big Bear ecosystem, the importance of habitat conservation, and everything scientists ultimately learn from Jackie’s medical examination.

If preservation of Jackie’s entire body is medically or legally impossible, we ask officials to explore every lawful alternative that would allow her remains or an appropriate memorial to maintain a permanent connection to Big Bear Valley.

We are not asking for Jackie to become someone’s private possession.

We are asking the responsible agencies to stop long enough to determine whether this historically significant eagle can continue educating people in the place where her extraordinary story began.

Time matters. Once Jackie’s remains are transferred and irreversibly distributed, this opportunity may be lost forever.

Jackie spent her life in Big Bear Valley.

She taught millions of people about bald eagles simply by living wild and free while the world watched.

Please sign this petition and ask the responsible agencies and organizations to explore every lawful possibility to preserve Jackie and bring her home to Big Bear Valley.

Before anything irreversible happens, give Jackie that chance.