The provincial government is giving $50,000 to the town of Harbour Grace to help them replace a statue of Amelia Earhart.

The town was left in shock late last month after the statue of the famed pilot, who went missing while crossing the Pacific in 1937, was stolen.

It has not been recovered.

Government will give the town $25,000 this year, and another $25,000 next year to help with replacement costs.

Area MHA Pam Parsons notes the statue was one of only three in the province named after women, so losing it is “devastating on many levels.”

Parsons says the money is a statement that they won’t allow “acts of disrespect to erase our shared heritage, reminding future generations that bold dreams can take flight, literally, from even the smallest places.”