Whitley County residents urged to make ornaments to honor or memorialize soldiers with a connection to this community
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The Military Family Research Institute at Purdue University (MFRI) is partnering with the Peabody Public Library to present the “Our Heroes’ Tree” initiative. Through this program, the Peabody Public Library is working to honor past and present service members and create an awareness of military families currently affected by deployment.
“Our Heroes’ Tree is a national program founded to recognize and honor the sacrifices of current service members, veterans and deceased service members,” said Deb Lowrance of the Peabody Public Library. “The library will display a tree featuring handmade ornaments created by community members to honor a service member. Libraries will also provide resources to help these communities provide support and generate a greater understanding of the experiences of servicemen and women and their families.”
To participate in the Our Heroes’ Tree initiative, participants simply create a handmade ornament honoring the service member in your family or community from past and present wars, conflicts or peacetime operations.
Bring the ornament to the library during the month of October where it will be placed on the tree with other ornaments.
Additionally, there will also be a program on October 24 from 3-5 p.m. for patrons to come to the library to make an ornament.
“We are also having a snack drive for those currently serving; bring snacks or toiletries to be sent to Iraq or Afghanistan,” Lowrance said. “Stories about individual service members can also be submitted and displayed in a binder near the tree.”
The Virtual Our Heroes’ Tree represents an online collection of the ornaments submitted at individual libraries. The Virtual Tree can be found online at www.cfs.purdue.edu/mfri/VirtualTree
Peabody Public Library and libraries across Indiana and around the globe are excited to launch this initiative in a continued effort to promote patriotism throughout U.S. communities.
To learn more, contact the Peabody Public Library at 244-5541.