News Release
ON RECEIPT
For more information, contact: Susan Larson Rodenburg, 421-1401,
RodenburgR@aol.com, manager of Lincoln Cares or Lynn Johnson, Parks and Recreation Director, 441-8265---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lincoln Cares Provides for Nebraska Liberty Bell Shelter
Now on display in Antelope Park, just west of the Auld Recreation Center
LINCOLN--Officials gathered on a beautiful and sunny Nov. 11 to celebrate another completed Lincoln Cares project—a new outdoor display for Nebraska’s Liberty Bell.
Mayor Coleen J. Seng dedicated Nebraska Liberty Bell as part of a public Veterans Day program Veterans Memorial Garden in Antelope Park. State Adjutant General Roger Lempke was the keynote speaker for the program, which included the dedication of the first Seabees Memorial in the State.
"The City’s Veterans Memorial Garden is the perfect place to observe Veterans Day and to reflect on the sacrifices our nation’s soldiers have made for freedom and liberty around the globe," said Mayor Seng. "The addition of the Nebraska Liberty Bell and the Seabees Memorial will further enhance this place of honor."
The history of the Nebraska Liberty Bell goes back to 1950, when the U.S. Department of the Treasury commissioned the casting of 55 full-sized replicas of the original Liberty Bell. The promotion was part of a savings bond drive with the slogan, "Save For Your Independence." The bells were given to the states and territories to be displayed and rung during patriotic observances.
Nebraska’s bell was in storage until this summer, when it was on display at Lincoln’s Haymarket Park for the 2005 baseball season. Lincoln Cares, the city donation program that allows LES customers to add $1 to their bill each month, provided $15,000 for this beautiful new shelter. With the additional help of the Veterans Memorial Garden Advisory Committee, the Lincoln Parks and Recreation Department and the Nebraska Army National Guard, the Nebraska Liberty Bell will now have a permanent place of honor near the Veterans Memorial Garden.
Lincoln Cares is supported by matching funds from TierOne Bank Foundation and World’s Foremost Bank (Cabela’s VISA Operation), up to $30,000 each annually.To find out more about Lincoln Cares, go to:
www.lincoln.ne.gov Keyword: Cares, or call: 441-8264.###
CUTLINE (digital photo attached): On hand to celebrate the new home for the Nebraska Liberty Bell on Nov. 11 are (from left) Major General Roger P. Lempke, Adjutant General of the Nebraska Army National Guard, Mayor Coleen Seng and Parks and Recreation Director Lynn Johnson. The bell was taken out of storage and placed in this new shelter for public display with the help of many organizations, including $15,000 from Lincoln Cares, the City of Lincoln’s community donation program which allows LES customers to add $1 to their bill each month for community projects. Lincoln Cares is supported by matching funds from TierOne Bank Foundation and World’s Foremost Bank (Cabela’s VISA Operation), up to $30,000 each annually.