Sister city honors Naperville woman with sculpture

When Bev Eigenberg found out a sculpture in Naperville's Sister City of Nitra, Slovakia, was being named in her honor, she couldn't wait to see what would forever be her representation in the European country.

"It looks just like me, right?" she mused.

Actually, it looks like a cross between a bowling pin and an old-time milk jug topped with a half-eaten potato chip and painted to mimic some sort of fantastic dreamscape.

But at 5 feet tall, it's just about Eigenberg's size.

"It's actually very wonderful and makes you feel good inside to be recognized by friends like this," she said.

Eigenberg is a Sister City commissioner and has worked with officials from Nitra for years.

The sculpture is part of a public art project in its second year in Nitra that was started after representatives from the Slovakian city saw the success of the Naperville United Way's public art campaign. Money raised from the Nitra campaign goes toward community projects such as building playgrounds, Eigenberg said.

"Our culture here in Naperville has rubbed off on our Sister City," said Naperville Mayor George Pradel. "Nitra will be raising money and using it to their benefit, which is a great example of an idea exchange with Naperville."

About 20 to 25 of the similarly shaped sculptures will be placed around Nitra. The one named in honor of Eigenberg will be placed in Svatoplukovo Square.

"They have a wonderful celebration when they put them out," Eigenberg said. "It's really quite a party."

Last year, the Naperville Sister Cities Commission sponsored another sculpture that organizers named "Joe Naper."

"They were going to name this one after Mayor Pradel, but somebody decided the little flair at the top made it look more feminine and the next thing I know I got a note telling me they were going to name it after 'our dear Miss Bev,'" Eigenberg said.