21052951.indd

8 Morristown Magazine When the search in Jefferson City turned out to have been placed by the Jefferson County Lions Club in 1992, which has since relocated to Dan- dridge, Denton was back to the drawing board. Denton called Ron Wright, who works for Parks and Recreation. Wright said Fred was sitting in the barn. “He called me and said he was going to call the road department to see if they know where it’s at. It wasn’t 15 minutes when he called back sa- ying he found it. He told me the Parks and Rec. Department had it in storage and he wanted to restore it and put it back out. I told him that I would be excited to do that, but before we present the idea to the club, we need to have a plan.” Denton called Lion’s Drinking Fountains, ba- sed in Minnesota, which produces the lions, if the business could restore the fountain. In late 2021, after receiving their interest in the project, the club went to work with preparations for Fre- d’s trip. “We had to build a crate to put him in to ship him to Minnesota,” Grooms said. “After the crate was finished Johnny brought him to a meeting and we got to put Fred in the box and nail him shut to send him off.” Once the company received Fred, they were ready to get to work to restore him. The Ribbon cutting for the Return of Fred the Lion to Fred Miller Park. Lions Club members pose with Fred the Lion following his return to Fred Miller Park