Contacts:
Gail Gawenda, Department of Financial Institutions,
608-267-1711
Ethnie Groves, Office of the Governor, 608-261-2156
Official Release Ceremony for the Quarter to be Held in Wisconsin on October
25
A delegation of state officials was in Denver today to
attend the official striking ceremony for the Wisconsin State Quarter at the
Denver Mint. The event is part of the U.S. Mint’s 50 State Quarters®
Program that will honor every state in the order each joined the union.
Tuesday was Wisconsin’s day, and the Wisconsin delegation,
led by Lorrie Keating Heinemann, Secretary of the Department of Financial
Institutions, witnessed the minting of the first batch of quarters that will
be arriving at Wisconsin banks and credit unions the week of October 25,
2004.
“Wisconsin’s citizens can be proud of the nation’s new
quarter, which celebrates our state and its agricultural heritage,” Governor
Doyle said. “This coin will be a long-time reminder to the entire country
of our state’s success and traditions, and I look forward to the official
release ceremony later this month.”
The new quarter will not be officially released to the
public in Wisconsin until the official release ceremony, which will be held
on Monday, October 25, 2004 at 9:30 a.m. at State Fair Park in West Allis.
Governor Doyle and First Lady Jessica Doyle will join U.S. Mint Director
Henrietta Holsman Fore at the release ceremony – called “A Celebration of
Wisconsin” – to celebrate Wisconsin’s culture and history and accept the new
quarter from the U.S. Mint.
Wisconsin is the 30th state to launch its own design since
the program began in 1999. On May 29, 1848, Wisconsin became the 30th state
to be admitted into the Union. The Wisconsin design depicts an agricultural
theme featuring a cow, a round of cheese, and an ear of corn. The design
also bears an inscription of the state motto – “Forward.” In 2003,
Wisconsin citizens selected the design in a statewide vote.
At the release ceremony, all school-aged children will
receive a free quarter, provided by the U.S. Mint, and all attendees will
have the opportunity to buy $10 rolls of the new quarter (cash only).
Radio personality Wayne Larrivee, the Green Bay Packers’
announcer, will serve as Master of Ceremonies. The celebration will
include: farmers market featuring Wisconsin products; the Colby Elementary
School from Colby, Wisconsin singing the national anthem; dance performances
by Hmong, Latino, African-American, and Native American groups; and scouts
saying the Pledge of Allegiance. The celebration will feature appearances
by Miss Wisconsin, the Fairest of the Fair, Alice in Dairyland, Bernie
Brewer, Bango Buck, and the Klement’s Racing Sausages.
For more information on the Wisconsin Quarter or the Quarter
Release Celebration, visit: http://quarter.wi.gov. Schools and teachers who
are interested in bringing groups to the Quarter Release Celebration should
contact Rachel Allen in the Governor’s Office at 608-267-3839 or at
Rachel.Allen@gov.state.wi.us.
Co-sponsors of the release celebration include: the Office
of Governor Jim Doyle; M&I Bank, the official bank sponsor; the Wisconsin
Milk Marketing Board; the Wisconsin Department of Tourism; the Wisconsin
Department of Financial Institutions; and the Wisconsin Department of
Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection.
