Deborah Copenhaver Fellows (born 1948) is an American sculptor known for her Western themed works. Her best known work is the life-sized statue of former Arizona senator Barry Goldwater included in the

National Statuary Hall Collection The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol is composed of statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history. Limited to two statues per state, the collection was originally set up in the old ...

in the

U.S. Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill at ...

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

It was added to the collection as one of Arizona’s two statues in 2015.

Early life

Fellows was born and raised on a ranch in northern Idaho. Her father Deb Copenhaver was a champion rodeo rider, winning two world championships in 1955 and 1956 and was inducted into the

National Cowboy Hall of Fame The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 Western and American Indian art works and artifacts. The facility also has the world's most extensive collection of Ame ...

in 1991 and the

ProRodeo Hall of Fame The ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy was opened in August 1979 as a museum designed to "preserve the legacy of the cowboy contests, the heritage and culture of those original competitions, and the champions of the past, pr ...

in 1992. As a teenager Deborah Fellow was selected Miss Rodeo Washington. During this time she developed a passion for horses that is frequently reflected in her sculpture. She attended Fort Wright College of the Holy Names where she first began a serious study of sculpture. Her statue of Bing Crosby was erected just outside the Crosby Student Center, on the

Gonzaga University Gonzaga University (GU) () is a private Jesuit university in Spokane, Washington. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. Founded in 1887 by Joseph Cataldo, an Italian-born priest and Jesuit missionary, the ...

and dedicated on May 3, 1981, Crosby’s birthday. Fellows won a competition to create the Washington Korean War Memorial, (hers was of a Korean War veteran) and it was dedicated on the

Washington State Capitol The Washington State Capitol or ''Legislative Building'' in Olympia is the home of the government of the state of Washington. It contains chambers for the Washington State Legislature and offices for the governor, lieutenant governor, secretary ...

grounds in

Olympia, Washington Olympia is the capital of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat and largest city of Thurston County. It is southwest of the state's most populous city, Seattle, and is a cultural center of the southern Puget Sound region. Europea ...

, on July 24, 1993. She was inducted into the

National Sculpture Society Founded in 1893, the National Sculpture Society (NSS) was the first organization of professional sculptors formed in the United States. The purpose of the organization was to promote the welfare of American sculptors, although its founding members ...

in 2008 and the

National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is located in Fort Worth, Texas, US. Established in 1975, it is dedicated to honoring women of the American West who have displayed extraordinary courage and pioneering fortitude. The museum is an edu ...

in 2009.

Selected works

* The Founder, aka

Adolph Coors Adolph Herman Joseph Coors Sr. (February 4, 1847 – June 5, 1929) was a German American brewer who founded the Adolph Coors Company in Golden, Colorado, in 1873. Early years Adolph Hermann Joseph Kuhrs was born in Barmen in Rhenish Prus ...

Golden, Colorado Golden is a home rule city that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 20,399 at the 2020 United States Census. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the base of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountai ...

, 1980 * Bing Crosby,

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Cana ...

, 1981 * Inland Northwest Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Dedicated November 10, 1985 * Montana Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Dedicated November 11, 1988 * Tribute to a Cowboy aka Benny Binion,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

, dedicated November 28, 1988 * Washington Korean War Memorial, Dedicated July 24, 1993 * Lady of the Sea, Cape Sante Marina,

Anacortes, Washington Anacortes ( ) is a city in Skagit County, Washington, United States. The name "Anacortes" is an adaptation of the name of Anne Curtis Bowman, who was the wife of early Fidalgo Island settler Amos Bowman.1948 births Living people 20th-century American sculptors Artists from Montana Sculptors from Arizona Washington State University alumni Heritage University alumni 20th-century American women artists Cowgirl Hall of Fame inductees National Sculpture Society members 21st-century American sculptors 21st-century American women artists American women sculptors