Emporia’s designation as the birthplace of Veterans Day soon will be more prominent.
An effort to raise money to purchase four signs for each of the city’s main entrances reached its conclusion on Thursday, said Emporian Jesse Solis, who has spearheaded the project.
“Yesterday the city gave me a final figure that put us way over the top,” Solis said. “I’m sure glad that people stepped up to the plate.”
Donations large and small have been coming in for the signs, each of which will cost $1,100. Solis said the extra money will be used for such things as landscaping.
“There’s going to be some other costs, I’m sure,” he said.
The Kansas Department of Transportation will be in contact with Solis and the city next week to outline the next steps, such as who will make the signs and when they will be available. The department also will set Solis up with a public relations person to help plan for the introduction of the signs.
Solis hopes to have at least one sign in time to hold a formal unveiling ceremony, either at the All-Veterans Golf Tournament on Sept. 19 or during the city’s Veterans Day celebration in November.
The largest donation Solis received, $1,100, will cover the cost of one sign, but Solis said he appreciates all donations, from a few dollars on up.
“There were certain people that gave us large amounts, but $10, $20 donations, for something like this, is the same to me as the large amounts,” he said. “Any amount that was donated was donated from the heart.”
Solis has long been an advocate for veterans, ever since he was a boy growing up in Emporia.
“When I was a kid, 13 or 14, I used to shine shoes for a Greek gentleman that had a shoe-shine parlor here in town, Al King,” Solis said.
King first originated the idea of changing Armistice Day to Veterans Day, and was involved in the effort to recognize all veterans on Nov. 11. A bill recognizing Veterans Day was signed by President Eisenhower in 1954.
“We are the founding city of Veterans Day and I thought, ‘Why do we not have anything acknowledging that fact?’” Solis said of his original inspiration to raise money for the signs.