Hand from Jesus statue rescued from lost and found

After going missing for a few days, the left hand of the Jesus statue on Big Mountain is back in the possession of the Knights of Columbus.

The hand reportedly was knocked off in early February on the same day the Flathead National Forest announced it would reauthorize a special use permit for the Knights to keep the statue on Big Mountain.

The hand showed up at Whitefish Mountain Resort’s lost and found department shortly after resort officials noticed it was missing. The marketing director then gave the hand to resort Chief Executive Officer Dan Graves, who gave it back to the Knights of Columbus.

Resort spokeswoman Riley Polumbus said it’s popular for skiers to give the Jesus statue a high five. She guesses someone likely broke off the hand during a high five after the announcement the statue would stay on Big Mountain.

The hand, which falls off regularly, will be reattached this summer.

The statue has stood at its location near the top of Chair 2 since 1954.