The United States Mint will join the National Forest Service to launch the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program coin honoring Shawnee National Forest Thursday, Feb. 4, at 10 a.m. Central Time (CT). The ceremony will be held at the Southeastern Illinois College Deaton Gymnasium in Harrisburg, Illinois. Invited guests include U.S. Senators Mark Kirk and Richard “Dick” Durbin, U.S. Congressman Mike Bost, U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell, and Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner. The free event will conclude with a coin exchange, where the public can trade cash for $10 rolls of newly minted Shawnee National Forest quarters.
WHAT:
Shawnee National Forest Quarter Launch Ceremony and Coin Exchange
WHO:
- Dean Bidle, Program Manager-Numismatic Packaging Planning, United States Mint
- Allen Nicholas, Supervisor, Shawnee National Forest
- Matt Rice, District Director for U.S. Congressman Mike Bost (R-IL12)
- Deb Detmers, District Director for U.S. Congressman John Shimkus (R-IL15)
- Ben Barnes, Second Chief, Shawnee Tribe
- George Blanchard, Representative, Eastern Shawnee Tribe
- Cindy Cain, Executive Director, Southernmost Illinois Tourism Bureau
- Todd Carr, President, Southernmost Illinois Tourism
INVITED:
- U.S. Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL)
- U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL)
- U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell
- Bruce Rauner, Governor, State of Illinois
WHEN:
10 a.m. CT, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016
WHERE:
Southeastern Illinois College
Deaton Gymnasium
3575 College Road
Harrisburg, IL 62946
Coin Forum
The United States Mint will host a coin forum the evening before the launch ceremony–5-6 p.m. (CT) Wednesday, Feb. 3–at Shawnee National Forest Headquarters, 50 Highway 145 South, Harrisburg, IL 62946. The coin forum is an opportunity for members of the public to express their views about future coinage, and learn about upcoming United States Mint coin programs and initiatives.
The quarter honoring Shawnee National Forest is the 31st release in the United States Mint America the Beautiful Quarters® Program, a 12-year initiative to honor 56 national parks and other national sites authorized by Public Law 110-456. Each year, the public will see five new national sites depicted on the reverses (tails sides) of the America the Beautiful Quarters. The United States Mint is issuing these quarters in the order in which the national sites were officially established.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
Information about the United States Mint and the America Beautiful Quarters Program is available at http://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint/.
