Updated October 2, 2026.
For people who knew Jackie through a screen, traveling to Big Bear won’t be necessary to watch her commemoration. The bald eagle’s memorial will be livestreamed on Saturday, October 3, 2026, giving viewers outside the mountain community a way to join the remembrance.
The ceremony opens Wings Over Big Bear’s memorial weekend. There are three starting times to keep straight: the broadcast begins first, followed by the venue opening and then the formal service. Joining the livestream when it starts means arriving an hour ahead of the ceremony.
| October 3 schedule | Pacific time | Eastern time |
|---|---|---|
| Livestream begins | 9:30 a.m. | 12:30 p.m. |
| Venue opens to visitors | 10 a.m. | 1 p.m. |
| Commemoration begins | 10:30 a.m. | 1:30 p.m. |
The official Wings Over Big Bear page now includes a ceremony player. If the player above doesn’t load, use the official event page or its links to the Visit Big Bear and Care for Big Bear YouTube channels. The nest-camera video farther down the event page isn’t the memorial broadcast.
The event page doesn’t specify what the first hour of the broadcast will show or confirm whether a replay will remain available afterward. Anyone planning to watch later should check the official channels for a recording rather than assume one has been promised.
For in-person visitors, the gathering is at Bear Mountain Resort, 43101 Goldmine Drive in Big Bear Lake. Admission is free, and organizers ask guests to RSVP. The opening will be led by the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation, following music from MountainTop Strings as guests arrive. Shelley Egan of Friends of Big Bear Valley is listed in the 11:05 a.m. Pacific speaker block.
The updated program lists the memorial’s conclusion at 12:30 p.m. Pacific / 3:30 p.m. Eastern, with booths open until 1:30 p.m. Pacific. An art unveiling with local artist Jilliana Marshall is also on the program. Those later booth hours shouldn’t be mistaken for the broadcast’s guaranteed running time.
Watching from home isn’t the only way to participate. Postcards for Jackie invites readers to send a memory, message or personal tribute on a postcard of their own. Complimentary postcards will also be available at the event while supplies last. Organizers list this mailing address:
Postcards For Jackie
C/O: Visit Big Bear
PO Box 1936
Big Bear Lake, CA 92315
A public farewell for a life watched remotely
On October 2, Friends of Big Bear Valley shared a new remembrance of Jackie ahead of the ceremony. Of her 25 eggs, 10 hatched and seven eaglets fledged, according to the nonprofit. It also recalled a 62-hour stretch of incubation during a storm and credited Sandy Steers with making Jackie’s life accessible to viewers around the world.
Long before this memorial was planned, cameras made it possible to follow Jackie without entering her habitat. Friends of Big Bear Valley installed its first nest camera in October 2015 and added a second, wider view in 2021. The nonprofit maintains the streams and makes them available without a viewing charge.
The second camera showed viewers more of the habitat around Jackie and Shadow’s nest.
The educational work also reaches classrooms. Friends of Big Bear Valley provides materials for teachers and offers virtual question-and-answer sessions during nesting season. Students can ask about the birds, their nest and the habitat around it. The same remote access that serves individual viewers can support a lesson without a field trip.
The memorial follows Jackie’s death in August, after weeks of medical care. Her life had been observed through the nest cameras over successive breeding seasons. A broadcast of the commemoration gives that geographically scattered audience access to an event being held in the place she lived.
This October gathering is separate from the September 26 tribute at Fawn Park in Fawnskin. Our guide to Jackie’s different memorial events explains the distinction. Earlier footage from another gathering shouldn’t be confused with the upcoming Bear Mountain ceremony.
The weekend continues on Sunday, October 4, with activities away from the ceremony venue. The plans include birdwatching and native seed collection, with individual activities carrying their own locations and registration requirements. Trail Conservation Day at Grays Peak Trailhead runs from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Pacific, with talks at the top of each hour.
Sunday’s seed collection has a practical purpose: gathering native plant material for future restoration projects in the San Bernardino National Forest. The work is open to beginners, although advance registration is required.
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