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| Galesburg Says Happy Birthday to Honest Abe |
A Galesburg man in charge of the committee that has organized a multitude of celebrations recognizing the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth, including the birthday party in town Thursday, says it was important for him to be involved.
Retired Knox County Judge Harry Bulkeley is chair of the city's Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, which hosted a birthday party Thursday night including a showing of the classic Lincoln-themed movie "Abraham Lincoln in Illinois" at the Orpheum Theatre.
Bulkeley, who jokes that he was chosen as chair of the commission after missing a meeting, tells WGIL it's important for everyone to take away one important lesson from the celebrations.
"(It's important to celebrate) how deeply Abraham Lincoln has affected the peoople of the country, and especially the people of Illinois," Bulkeley said. "His name is on our license plates, but sometimes we don't think about how profoundly he affected the fact that our nation exists the way it is today."
State Representative Don Moffitt was also at Thursday night's birthday celebration, and tells WGIL he feels the same way.
"Remembering and recognizing, and how fortunate we are as a nation, that Lincoln came along and rose to the top when he did," Moffitt said. "If it had not been for Abraham Lincoln, there's a good chance we would not be the United States of America today," Moffitt said, emphasizing the word "United."
Moffitt says he believes excitement about the Railsplitter's 200th birthday would have been at a fever pitch already, but Barack Obama becoming president and speaking in Springfield last night certainly helped that.
Birthday party attendees at the Orpheum Theatre enjoy cake and try to guess how many pennies are in a jar...
...for any of a number of prizes that were given away after the movie.
(A look at one of two cakes designed and donated by HyVee for Lincoln's birthday.)
(A cut-out -- believed to be actual height -- of Lincoln stood in the lobby of the Orpheum Theatre Thursday night. WGIL News Story and Photos by Will Stevenson.) |
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| 02 12 09 by Newsroom |
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