For a week at Rotary Hill, Naperville Healing Field of Honor paid tribute to all veterans, raising funds to benefit a Fisher House at Hines VA Hospital
Volunteers set up 2,009 American flags on Rotary Hill in conjunction with Veterans Day and the field of red, white and blue attracted thousands of visitors from all over the region from Nov. 8-14. And what an awesome sight it was!
Hosted by the Naperville Exchange Club in collaboration with the Naperville Park District, the Naperville Healing Field of Honor provided a place of peaceful reflection, giving individual donors who purchased flags for $30 each a chance to tie a yellow ribbon with a commemorative message for $5 as a way to say thanks to anyone who has ever served our great nation.
The weeklong exhibit was enhanced by other events, too, featured here in text from the end to the beginning! (Photos at right start with 2,009 flags ready to roll to Rotary Hill!)
On Nov. 14, the Exchange Club dedicated a new plaque at Veterans Plaza along the Riverwalk. The plaque is engraved with the names of eight soldiers and sailors from Napervillle who have given the ultimate sacrifice serving the United States military since Sept. 11, 2001.
During the Rotary Club of Naperville meeting on Thurs., Nov. 12, President Pat Merryweather honored 32 veterans, all members of the service club established in Naperville in 1941.
Naperville Healing Field of Honor Chairman Dave Wentz attended the Rotary luncheon with Paul Swenson of the Colonial Flag Foundation to thank them for their support. Not only did the Rotary Club sign on as a supporter early in the project, their board purchased an additional 22 flags as a tribute to every veteran in their club.
During the luncheon, Rotarian John Robbins was so excited he could hardly speak. His good news to club members was that the 4-year-old boy running up Rotary Hill among the American flags on the front page of the Chicago Sun-Times on Veterans Day was his grandson, Beckham.
After their luncheon meeting, the Rotary veterans took the Naperville Trolley to Rotary Hill along the Riverwalk where they could see their individual flags standing tall. Club member Jini Clare took individual photos of Rotarians next to their flags.
In the afternoon of Veterans Day, local and state officials gathered to rededicate the Civil War Cannon in Central Park with local historians from Naper Settlement.
At 11AM, Nov. 11, under sunny skies, hundreds gathered at Rotary Hill for Naperville's annual Veterans Day observance to honor all men and women in the military, a fitting tribute coordinated by Jack Shiffler, an officer at the Judd Kendall VFW Post 3873.
"Let us not make it a field of mourning," said Shiffler, a Marine who served in Vietnam. "Let us make it a feeling of honor and remembrance."
Poetry, patriotic music by the Naperville Municipal Band, carillon bells and a few short speeches punctuated the ceremony led by Chairman Wentz, also a past president of the Naperville Exchange Club.
During the ceremony, Swenson, who originated the idea of the Colonial Flag Foundation Healing Field for the first anniversary of Sept. 11 in Utah, said veterans inspire him "to be a better father, husband and citizen."
Also during the Veterans Day tribute, Deb Rickert, founder of Operation Support Our Troops- Illinois, said her organization would match the money raised by the Naperville Healing Field of Honor Committee to help fund a Fisher House at Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital.
According to www.fisherhouse.org, a Fisher House is "a home away from home" for families of patients receiving medical care at major military and VA medical centers. The homes are normally located within walking distance of the treatment facility or have transportation available. There are 43 Fisher Houses, with several under construction, including one at Hines VA Hospital, the first one in Illinois.
Earlier in the week, many supporters tied placards on flags with yellow ribbons.
"When the flags wave, you feel that the hill is alive with love and time to reflect on our freedom, our veterans and everyone who has served our country," said supporter Bev Eigenberg, the mother of a son who served in the Marines and wife of a World War II pilot. "Parents should bring their children to experience the event. Young children may not understand it, but they will never forget seeing 2,009 American flags in so many rows."
Belgio's Riverwalk Eatery stayed open daily for refreshments and flag sales ($30) organized by Fundraising Chairman Anna Zimmerman. Flags with tags ($35) were available at the Eatery until nearly all 2,009 sold. Approximately 300 tags remained at the end of Veterans Day, according to Zimmerman.
"Many visitors gave cash or wrote checks without purchasing a flag," she said, noting that she emptied the red, white and blue barrel "bank" every evening, painted by volunteer Jeff Penick.
A guest book in the Riverwalk Eatery gave visitors a chance to comment. "Wow!" "Inspirational!" are probably the two most-used remarks.
In addition to seeing the red, white and blue field of Old Glory at ground level from the Riverwalk, visitors viewed the exhibit from observation decks in Moser Tower for $3.
Weekday tours of the carillon as well as all flag and tag sales benefited operations of a Fisher House, a place for families of patients to stay while visiting their loves ones.
Going forward, organizers have another chance to raise $15,000 for operations at Fisher House. Naperville artist Marianne Lisson Kuhn has been commissioned by Shelley and David Hampton to paint her interpretation of The Naperville Healing Field of Honor at Rotary Hill. The original will find a home at Fisher House. A limited edition of 150 prints will be produced and available for $100 each.
To order a print or for additional stories and photos depicting the Healing Field of Honor, visit www.healingfield.org/naperville . The regional media were very generous with stories about this special exhibit to honor all veterans.
This tribute to veterans would not have been possible without the commitment and expertise of the Naperville Park District under the leadership of Executive Director Ray McGury and his dedicated team.
Add to it, Volunteer Coordinators Kathleen Malecki and Brad Wilson organized hundreds of volunteers for set up and take down to help the event run smoothly.
"I went to see the flags on Veterans Day and again Saturday morning," said Naperville resident Jean Kuhn. "When I went to pick up my flag on Sunday, all the flags were in barrels in the warming house for easy pick-up. The volunteers were very organized."
The entire Healing Field of Honor Committee of volunteers, supporters and individual flag donors created a once-in-a-lifetime tribute to recognize everyone who has ever served in the military to protect our freedoms as defined in the U.S. Constitution. Considering the thousands of photographers who attended the exhibit, the Naperville Healing Field of Honor for all veterans will long be remembered.
And by the end of the week, approximately $50,000 in flags sales would be matched dollar for dollar by Operation Support Our Troops-Illinois in order for Rickert and Wentz to present a gift to benefit the Fisher House at Hines VA Hospital for $100,000 on Dec. 30, 2009.
But even more important, God bless America and all veterans who have protected our right to assemble for more than 230 years. Peace.
Operation Support Our Troops matched $50,000 raised by Naperville Healing Field to benefit 'home away from home' at Hines VA Hospital
Members of the Naperville Healing Field of Honor Committee and the Naperville Exchange Club visited Hines VA Hospital on Wednesday, Dec. 30, to present a $50,000 check for a Fisher House, an extended family stay facility now under construction in Hines, Illinois. And to top it off, folks from Operation Support our Troops Illinois provided a matching gift of $50,000 from the proceeds of their annual “Rockin’ For The Troops” concert in July, for a total donation of $100,000.
A brief donation ceremony took place inside the Spinal Cord Injury Center at Hines.
From Nov. 8-14, the Healing Field of Honor graced Rotary Hill along Naperville’s Riverwalk with 2,009 3’ x 5’ American flags on 8-ft. poles. The nonprofit initiative, hosted by the Exchange Club of Naperville in collaboration with the Naperville Park District and underwritten by 20 generous supporters at $1,500 each, raised funds by selling individual flags with commemorative yellow tags for $35.
“The key to this event”, according to event chairman Dave Wentz, “was the amazing response from the people from every sector of our community and other nearby communities who reached out to help honor the men and women in the armed forces who served in past conflicts or are currently serving.”
"The support for both of these events was simply unbelievable," added Deborah Rickert, President and Founder of OSOTIL. "We both caught a break with the weather, but the real success was seeing how far our local communities were willing to go to show their support for our troops both at home and abroad.”
According to www.fisherhouse.org, a Fisher House is "a home away from home" for families of patients receiving medical care at major military and VA medical centers. The homes are normally located within walking distance of the treatment facility or have transportation available. There are 43 Fisher Houses, with several under construction. Set to open in February with an official grand opening slated for May, the Fisher House near Hines VA Hospital is the first one in Illinois.
---Submitted by Trish Krenick, Exchange Club of Naperville
Progress! What's more, 150 limited edition colored prints of the Naperville Healing Field of Honor commissioned with funding by Dave Hampton and painted by Naperville artist Marianne Lisson Kuhn are now available for $100. When sold, the original painting and another $15,000 will be given to enhance the operations of the Fisher House.
For more information, visit www.healingfield.org/naperville.
Thanks to Supporters who made it happen... the Naperville Healing Field of Honor was initiated by the Exchange Club of Naperville in collaboration with the Naperville Park District.
Organizers forever are grateful for funding from the following supporters:
The Exchange Club of Naperville
Judd Kendall VFW Post 3873
American Legion Post 43
The Kelsch Family
Rotary Club of Naperville
Naperville Noon Lions Club
David Hampton
Shelley Hampton
Window World of Chicagoland
Operation Support our Troops Illinois (OSOTIL)
Friends of Fisher House at Hines VA Hospital
Rotary Club of Naperville/Downtown
Humana
Toby Hayer, in memory of her father, World War I Veteran William G.
Hayer
Belgio's Catering
Meson Sabika
Bev Eigenberg, In memory of her husband, World War II Veteran & Pilot
Harry Eigenberg
The Wright Family
Naperville Woman's Club
The above organizations, families and individuals provided $1,500 each to underwrite the cost of 2,009 flags which were sold with yellow tags for $35 each to raise the funds for a Fisher House at Hines VA Hospital.
In-kind services from Minuteman Press, Fast Signs, Positively Naperville and the Naperville Park District made a difference, too.
Editor's Note: We appreciate the feedback and hundreds of photos that have been sent our way. Some of them appear at www.healingfield.org/Naperville.
Here's an amazing video view of Rotary Hill produced by Rick Whitmer, accompanied by a rendition of God Bless America. Whitmer served in Vietnam: www.whitmersblog.com .
Thanks to all for support of the Naperville Healing Field of Honor!
We will always remember our special friend Gail Bivin
In the fall of 2009, Positively Naperville and all downtown merchants received sad news that one of our best friends had lost her battle with cancer. Gail Andrews Bivin, owner of the Canterbury Shoppe for 12 years, died Oct. 28, 2009 after more than two years of fighting the disease that touches every family.
Stories in Friday's Daily Herald (http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=332731&src=76 ) and the Naperville Sun (http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1854515.Longtime-business-owner-Bivin-dies_na103009.article ) only began to capture the generous spirit and business savvy of this remarkable woman.
She's truly an angel and her story of strength and unwavering dedication will always be remembered by everyone who had the good fortune to know her kind and gentle ways.
Though only 54, her outreach and compassion made a difference in our community from Little Friends to the Riverwalk and including just about every charitable cause that needed a little boost or a place for promotion on a shelf in her gift shop where it was Christmas every day of the year. We are so blessed to have learned from her and counted her as a special friend.
We are keeping Gail's husband, Bob Bivin, her family and friends and all the folks associated with the Canterbury Shoppe in our hearts and prayers.
Gifts in honor of Gail Bivin can be sent to Little Friends, Inc., 140 No. Wright St., Naperville, IL 60450.
---PN
Oh, my, how the world has changed since 1909!
Here's a sampling of just how much our world has changed during the last 100 years. For instance...
•The American flag had 45 stars.
•William H. Taft was President of the United States.
•The average life expectancy was 47 years.
•A competent accountant could expect to earn $2,000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
•Fuel for the 1909 Ford Model R was sold in drug stores only. There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads in the United States. The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
•Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
•Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
•More than 95 percent of all births took place at home.
•Ninety percent of all doctors had no college education. Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and the government as “substandard.”
•The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower.
•The average wage in 1909 was 22 cents per hour.
•The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
•Sugar cost four cents a pound, eggs were fourteen cents a dozen and coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
•Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
•Five leading causes of death were, in order, pneumonia and influenza, tuberculosis, diarrhea, heart disease and stroke.
•The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was 30.
•Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented yet. / Mother's Day and Father's Day did not exist.
•Two out of every 10 adults could not read or write and only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.
•Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said, “Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a 'perfect guardian of health'.”
•Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.
•There were about 230 reported murders in the entire nation.
•And on a sobering note, 95 percent of the taxes we have now did not exist in 1909. What will it be like in another 100 years?
We are grateful to our advertising sponsors, our contributing writers, our readers and to Vietnam veteran Mike Miles for sending us some of these tidbits from 1909.
Naperville Healing Field of Honor
Local Committee
Event Chairman:
David Wentz
Fundraiser Chair:
Anna Zimmerman
Public Relations Chair:
Stephanie Penick
Field Coordinator:
Ray McGury
Volunteer Chair:
Kathleen Malecki
Brad Wilson
Program Chair:
Jack Shiffler
Thanks again to thousands of supporters and visitors!
Memories of 2009 will never be forgotten
Thanks for using your curser to SCROLL
down this page!
5th Annual
Rockin' for the
Troops! / July 17, 2010
at Cantigny
Please keep
SCROLLING!
Naperville News Blog
During sessions prior to Nov. 8, volunteers from several service organizatons assembled 2,009 flags inside the Naperville Park District Maintenance Facility. .
Healing Field Supporters Shelley and Dave Hampton commissioned Naperville artist Marianne Lisson Kuhn to paint a picture of the Healing Field. The original work of art is on display at the Fisher House near Hines VA Hospital. A limited edition print of the artwork sells for $100. All proceeds from the sale of 150 prints benefits the Fisher House.
Supporter Bev Eigenberg dedicated a flag to her late husband Harry Eigenberg who served in WWII.
Naperville Park District Executive Director Ray McGury, Mayor George Pradel and Healing Field Committee Chairman Dave Wentz set the first flag on Nov. 7. All 2,009 flags were in place by early morning on Nov. 8.
Glorious sunshine and gentle breezes brought the flags at Rotary Hill to life as a fitting tribute to all men and women who have served our great nation.
Every American Flag was graced with a yellow tag and a commemorative message tied with a yellow ribbon to the flag pole as a tribute to service and the American spirit.
The Naperville Healiing Field of Honor at Rotary Hill attracted photographers for eight days from Nov. 8-14.
Naperville's Veterans Day ceremonies at 11 a.m., Nov. 11, 2009, will forever be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. This Veterans Day was met with sunny skies and warm temperatures when hundreds of people demonstrated their appreciation to men and women, living and dead, who have paid a price for freedom around the world.
The observation deck of the Moser Tower/ Millennium Carillon provided another spectacular view along the Riverwalk and across the Jaycees Marina toward the Naperville Municipal Building.
The Naperville Healing Field of Honor also provided the perfect setting to remember folks with great American spirit. One of the American flags was dedidated in the memory of Gail Andrews Bivin, a downtown merchant who lost her battle with cancer at the end of October 2009.
Thanks for visiting the
Positively Naperville
Web site!
Visit often!
We update regularly.
Celebrate American spirit & traditions in Naperville!
Memorial Day Parade and Observance at Central Park on the last Monday in May
4-Day Ribfest and Independence Day Fireworks over July 4th weekend in Knoch Park
Veterans Day at 11AM on Nov. 11
("11-11-11") at Veterans Park on Gartner across from Grace United Methodist Church.
Find more information about these events, visits our monthly online calendars.
Editor's Update on June 14, 2010...
The PN photo with American flags above (Scroll up four photos.) from the 2009 Healing Field of Honor was used on Flag Day, June 14, by James M. Tarbox, Editor of The History Channel Magazine, in a story titled "Flag Day is the Day to Unfurl All its Glory."
Since 2002, the Colonial Flag Foundation has helped organizations and communities throughout the nation coordinate hundreds of Healing Fields to honor veterans and everyone who has ever fought any kind of battle.
