Project Status
A Promise of Peace
July 24, 2016
MISSION: ACCOMPLISHED A Promise of Peace, by Minnesota Artist and Sculptor Arthur H. Norby, International Peace Garden, July 24, 2016
JANUARY 11, 2016
I am proud to advise that 100% of the funding required to complete the Monument of Peace has been obtained at the IBT Meeting in Rayne, Louisiana. This is through two generous donations of $5,000.00 each by Region Officers. Fundraising will continue and donations will still be collected for a fund to maintain the monument. Now the celebration begins !! Gail Harrower, chair International Peace Garden Monument Committee
AUGUST 17, 2015— Art Norby, the artist whose vision created the Monument of Peace, personally delivered his work to the International Peace Garden north of Dunseith. Vern and Bev Zink met Mr. Norby there, and with the assistance of park personnel, carefully unloaded the statue and put it in its temporary home in the Interpretive Centre & Conservatory. Television crew from KXMC was on hand to document the arrival.
The granite base arrived several weeks prior to the statue being delivered, so the main components are ready to be installed. It will be in the main fountain where the original statue was placed in 1975 by WBCCI. Dedication of the Monument of Peace is tentatively scheduled for the end of July, 2106.
The work is not done yet—we still need to raise about $20,000 to pay our final bill to the artist. Now, it is up to US. This club will make history once again. A donation coupon to fill out can be found in the North Dakota Peace Garden Unit Directory, on our website, www.northdakota.airstreamclub.net or Region 7’s Website, www.region7.wbcci.net Please contact Mr. Doug Hevenor, International Peace Garden CEO, for more information on direct deposits.
JULY 1, 2015 — The 4 to 5 foot circular base of the monument has been delivered to the Inter-national Peace Gardens and they are busy preparing the site for its placement. The Monument is now complete and the artist, Mr. Art Norby is on his way this weekend to pick it up from the foundry in Utah and take it to his studio in New London, Minnesota.
Donations have been coming in since January 2012. This is a big project, now complete and waiting to be installed. Our only challenge is to obtain the rest of the funds. The total project cost is approx. $75,000.00 of which $47,000.00 has been donated, which leaves $28,000.00 to raise.
Sky Med donated $5,000.00 and the former governor of North Dakota made a generous donation. This is one of the few charitable projects where 100% of your donation goes directly to the monument. The people involved are donating their time and efforts.
The original monument project was completed when Bruce Maclean was International President in 1975. He has been a significant contributor and at the young age of 103, he really wants to be there to re-dedicate it. We hope that he will be able to make his dream come true.
Did you know that in 1975, the United States Congress authorized $1.3 million to complete the formal garden area which surrounds the monument? What an achievement between our two great countries, 200 years of peace – and what a wonderful symbol to be placed at the International Peace Gardens for many, many generations to come!
Everyone is getting excited to see this beautiful piece of art that weights 1,390 lbs. A monument this size with this quality should cost more than 1/4 million dollars. But the committee with the artist, foundry and the granite company have worked hard to keep the costs down. Great Job !!
Now, it is up to YOU. This club will make history once again. A donation coupon to fill out can also be found in the North Dakota Peace Garden Unit Directory, or Region 7’s Website, www.region7.wbcci.net
Dec. 9, 2013 The Monument of Peace project fundraising is on-going. One-hundred percent (100%) of all charitable donations go directly to the project administered by the International Peace Garden. There is no overhead and everyone involved is a volunteer. Funding has been a challenge, but still continues to grow. Due to the budget restraints, government funding in the USA and Canada is not easily accessible, but avenues are still being pursued.
Support at the International Rally at Huron, SD was great. Individual WBCCI members donated $1,181.00; Region 6 – $700.00; Washington Unit – $775.00; Region 12 Hobo Rally – $450.00; Region 11 – $250.00; and the Kansas City, MO Unit – $100.00. At the Region 7 “Festival of Tall Ships” rally in Duluth, Minnesota on July 24 – 30, 2013, SkyMed representatives Stan & Mary Schwenke presented the committee with a large check in the amount of $5,000.00. Stan and Mary donated $100.00 for every new SkyMed member who signed up at the Region rally and $50.00 for every renewal which resulted in $600.00. The rally raised $746.40 through an auction of donated items and a young entrepreneur, Melanie Costello, set up a Lemonade Sale table and raised $30.00. Thanks to all for their support of the project.
A big THANK YOU goes to the North Dakota Peace Garden Unit and their members who generously donated a total of $1,200.00 this past summer. At the Wisconsin Unit Rally held at Marquette, Michigan, the rally participants donated a total of $272.00 on the condition that Ed Emerick not tell the Badger story again at a Wisconsin Unit rally. There will be repercussions if he does not honour his word! The Wisconsin Unit also donated $100.00. Thanks to everyone for a great rally and for your support of the Peace Garden Project. Just recently, an anonymous donor gave a generous $5,000.00 gift. More information on this donation may follow at a later date. The Wisconsin Unit, Region 7, WBCCI and the International Peace Garden Monument Committee lost a valued member recently — that being Joan Lahr. Being instrumental in bringing forth the WBCCI Monument project as a WBCCI project in her tenure as Region 7 president, she worked diligently on the project and as co-chair. Her valued input will be missed, but she will not be forgotten. There were donations in memory of Joan sent to the International Peace Garden for the project. Respectfully submitted, Gail Harrower, chair
Feb. 28, 2013 A display was set up during the registration at the rallies and donations were collected. We received contributions from Region 5; the Long Beach California Unit and many private individuals who attended the rallies. A big THANK YOU for the contributions. The total collected was $1,045.48 and has been sent to the International Peace Garden. Another display will be set up during the International Rally in Huron, South Dakota and we will once again be accepting donations. Committee members in attendance in Blythe, CA were Vern Zink, Don Thomson, Linda Agre, Gail Harrower, Joan Lahr and our secretary, Lillian Thomson.
July 1, 2012 Fundraising has begun in earnest, while the Committee continues working with the engineers and manufacturers on the plans for the monument. More updates to follow!