Official launch ceremony February 7 part of several events promoting new Iowa quarter featuring Effigy Mounds
Message from Iowa native and current International Space Station astronaut Peggy Whitson part of February 7 event
Area residents and coin enthusiasts will get their first in-person look at the new quarter honoring Effigy Mounds National Monument and the state of Iowa - and many will get to take at least one of those quarters home with them at a special event Tuesday, February 7. At a launch ceremony open to the public and scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday at Waukon High School, the United States Mint is releasing the Effigy Mounds quarter into circulation as the first quarter released in 2017 under the U.S. Mint’s America the Beautiful Quarters® Program.
The coin design (pictured at right) showcases an aerial view of two bears and one bird effigy mound from the Marching Bear Group in the South Unit of the monument. The new coin design was crafted by U.S. Mint Artistic Infusion Program artist Richard Masters, a native of Sioux City who is currently residing in Wisconsin and serving as an associate professor of art at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
The Tuesday, February 7 launch ceremony will take place in the gymnasium of Waukon High School and will be emceed by KWWL news anchor Ron Steele and include remarks from Philadelphia Mint Plant Manager J. Marc Landry and other local officials. Representatives from the offices of Congressman Rod Blum and Senators Charles Grassley and Joni Ernst are also expected to be in attendance at this event.
Additional highlights of the launch ceremony will include a recorded video message from Peggy Whitson, a native of Mt. Ayr who is NASA's most experienced female astronaut and is currently aboard the International Space Station as part of Expedition 50 spanning from late October 2016 until March of this year. Edmore Green, Tribal Chief of the Sac and Fox Nation of Missouri in Kansas and Nebraska, will also be speaking, and a traditional drum group and the Honor Guard of the Andrew Blackhawk American Legion Post in Black River Falls, WI will also be contributing their specialties to the event in honor of the Native American legacy preserved at Effigy Mounds.
Immediately following the ceremony, a coin exchange begins where attendees can exchange $10 for a roll of the newly-minted Uncirculated 2017-D Effigy Mounds National Monument quarters (10-roll maximum). The coin exchange is sponsored by Kerndt Brothers Saving Bank. All children age 18 and younger will receive a free Effigy Mounds quarter provided by the U.S. Mint. Additionally, students in Kindergarten through fifth grades will receive the redesigned Effigy Mounds National Monument Junior Ranger badge, which incorporates the new America the Beautiful design as well.
Kerndt Brothers Bank will also host an open house coin exchange Tuesday afternoon, February 7 from 1-4 p.m. at its Waukon location. This event is also open to the public and will allow people unable to join the official launch celebration event to also have a chance to take home the Effigy Mounds National Monument quarters.
To further celebrate this event, Kerndt Brothers Bank will also be serving cake and coffee during its afternoon open house. The six other locations of Kerndt Brothers Bank will also have the new Effigy Mounds quarter coin to distribute beginning Wednesday, February 8.
The evening before the quarter dollar launch, the U.S. Mint will host a coin forum during which Mint representatives will inform attendees on current and future coin programs and receive feedback from collectors. The forum is scheduled to be held from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Monday, February 6 at the Effigy Mounds National Monument Visitor Center. For more information, call 563-873-3491, ext. 123 or visit the park's website at www.nps.gov/effigymounds.
