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Eisenhower Museum Gets a New Look!
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The museum redesign project begins.
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ABILENE, Kan. - The Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum is pleased to announce the commencement of a complete museum redesign. "This is an exciting time for all of us. With new scholarship and technology, the redesign will offer visitors many reasons to keep coming back. Ike and Mamie deserve the best and that is our goal," states Director Dawn Hammatt.
Beginning May 14, exhibits will be located in the library building while the museum gets a new look. The project is expected to take 12 months. The work will encompass the museum's entire 25,000 square foot exhibit space. The comprehensive exhibit redesign is made possible by the Eisenhower Foundation's successful multi-million dollar fundraising campaign.
"We are so grateful for our partnership with the Eisenhower Foundation. They have worked very hard raising funds from private donors to make this project a reality. We are also pleased to receive federal funding for much needed structural improvements for accessibility and public amenities," Hammatt said.
The PRD Group from Chantilly, Va., is designing the new exhibits and general contracting services will be provided by Jacobs.
The Eisenhower Presidential Library will maintain regular operating hours during the project. The site is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. (June and July: 8 a.m. to 5:45 p.m.). Guided tours of the boyhood home are offered every 15 minutes with the last tour at 4:30 p.m. Increased public programs and activities will be scheduled throughout the duration of the museum project.
Connect with us on social media at @IkeLibrary or visit www.eisenhower.archives.gov for additional details and updates on this exciting project.
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About the Eisenhower Presidential Library
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The Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home, a nonpartisan federal institution, is part of the Presidential Libraries network operated by the National Archives and Records Administration. Presidential Libraries promote understanding of the presidency and the American experience. We preserve and provide access to historical materials, support research, and create interactive programs and exhibits that educate and inspire. Public programs and exhibits at the Eisenhower Presidential Library are made possible through the generous support of the Eisenhower Foundation. To learn more, please visit eisenhowerfoundation.net.
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New Business Expansion in Abilene
Thirty-eight years ago, Brad and Donna Portenier spent a day during their short honeymoon exploring Abilene. This week, they announced plans to expand their Washington County business, Bradford Built, to Abilene. This expansion will mean not only additional jobs but also visitors. Business travelers are an important part of the tourism economy, and we're excited to welcome Brad, Donna and the Bradford Built family in our five-star community!
"On behalf of the City of Abilene, I am pleased to welcome Brad and Donna Portenier and their manufacturing business, Bradford Built, Inc. to our community. We are excited you chose Abilene for your expansion.
Bradford Built's expansion in Abilene will not only create new jobs in our community, but also build upon Abilene's existing base of community-focused entrepreneurs. Brad and Donna have a strong reputation of supporting their communities and we appreciate their same enthusiasm in Abilene.
As you can see from the construction equipment around town, Abilene is growing and businesses are choosing to invest in our future. The City of Abilene is committed to creating an environment that fosters positive economic growth.
Thank you for expanding to our five-star community. We wish you many years of continued success!"
-Dr. Timothy Shafer, Mayor
Watch video announcement > |
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Reitz & Rust Vintage Market and Camper Show
Visit Abilene, Kansas for the Reitz & Rust Vintage Market and Camper Show. Featured in
SouthernLiving, this is one event you won't want to miss!
Bonus: The first 100 attendees will receive a swag bag sponsored by the Abilene CVB and fill with goodies from area businesses and organizations!
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Arts & Ales
Save the date! Join the Arts Council of Dickinson County for their inaugural Arts & Ales fundraiser featuring craft beer samples from Kansas breweries, live music and silent auction.
Saturday, April 28, 2018
1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Little Ike Park / Parking Lot
Downtown Abilene
Tickets:
Pre-sale - $30
At the gate - $35
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Snapchat Geofilter
Snapchat Geofilters are popping up all over Abilene! Check out our special event filters this weekend at Reitz & Rust and Arts & Ales.
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HISTORY Channel Explains D-Day
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Eisenhower hated war. Years after the war ended, he gave a speech, with a paragraph that can be seen engraved in the marble stone wall surrounding his tomb in Abilene, Kansas.
"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. This is not a way of life at all in any true sense."
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8 Magnificent Parks and Gardens in Kansas Where You Can Surround Yourself with Flowers
Abilene's Eisenhower Park & Rose Garden is frequently named one of the best parks in Kansas.
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KANSAS! Magazine's Weekend Getaways Finalists
Abilene named one of the 20 finalists for KANSAS! Magazine's Favorite Weekend Getaway contest.
Sometimes you just have to get away. Maybe as a couple, family or just some friends needing to unplug and reconnect. What's your favorite destination in Kansas to take a weekend getaway?
Voting has begun, you can vote daily through March 16 and May 31. Winning "Weekend Getaways" will be announced in the winter 2018 issue.
Readers' Choice Guidelines
- Vote daily between now and May 31st.
- Winners will be determined by the total number of votes received.
- Winners will be revealed in the winter 2018 edition of the KANSAS!.
Please vote daily for Abilene using:
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26th Annual Abilene KS K78 Fly-In Breakfast & Open House
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Save the Date - Tourism After Hours
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Vendors Wanted
Abilene will be the scene of its first ever outdoor antique festival in the downtown area on May 12. Five blocks will be closed to traffic and filled with vendors selling vintage, retro, antique furniture and decor, repurposed items, and food. The event is being presented by two downtown antique malls, Mud Creek and Abilene Downtown Antique Mall and is being organized by volunteers who plan to make this an annual event.
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Car & Truck Show
Join Holm Automotive Center for a fun-filled day celebrating their 35th Anniversary!
Saturday, May 19
10:00 a.m. -
3:00 p.m.
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Throwback Thursday: The Other Eisenhower Boyhood Home (in Abilene)
THE OTHER EISENHOWER MUSEUM (in Germany)
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THE OTHER EISENHOWER BOYHOOD HOME (In Abilene)
By Wayne Burklund & Edited by Claus Gruendl
This a short, but interesting story that is mostly unknown to many Abilene residents. It all started at the end of WW II when Dwight David Eisenhower, nicknamed "Ike" (probably from the Old West, meaning "roughneck") commanded the Occupation Forces in Germany. On May 8th 1945, hostilities ended. Special Services Officers of the 10th Armored Div. and 101st Airborne Div. didn't waste any time getting pre-war facilities of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Southern Germany) back into operation. They needed someone to set up the, so called, AFRC (American Armed Forces Recreation Center) and hired a German citizen, Wilhelm Gruendl "William" as a hotel manager. William and his wife Elisabeth had two sons, Claus as the youngest.
William had met many VIP guests. But one visit stands out. It was mid-August of 1951, and General Eisenhower (then SACEUR - Supreme Allied Commander in Europe), his wife Mamie and her mother, Mrs. S. Doud, stopped by for a 11-day vacation. So, it happened that the Gruendl Family became very close life-long friends of Ike and Mamie.
The Gruends wanted to pay tribute to Ike for liberating Germany from the Nazi regime, by starting a modest Eisenhower Museum in Oberammergau (Southern Germany). They acquired everything they could related to Eisenhower history for their museum. In 1996 Claus and his mother Elisabeth came to Abilene to visit the present Eisenhower Library and Museum to learn more the Eisenhower family history and to get ideas for their museum. On this trip, they learned that Ike's parents were buried in the Abilene cemetery, and made a walking tour to look for their gravesite. They couldn't find it at first, but saw an elderly gentleman walking a dog, and approached him to ask if he knew anything about the location. This elderly gentleman turned out to be my cousin, Bill Jeffcoat, and they became instant friends when they learned that Bill was also an avid admirer of Ike, and serious collector of Ike memorabilia. After that, Claus and Elisabeth, made many annual summer trips to visit Bill and that's when I first met Claus and Elisabeth, and we became close friends. Claus and I tried to coordinate our frequent trips to Abilene to be there at the same time.
In Claus's research, he learned that when the Eisenhower family first came to Abilene they lived at a home at 112 S.E. 2nd, but as their family grew, that home soon became too small, and they moved to the present celebrated home at 201 S.E. 4th.
By coincident, also during the 1996 trip to Abilene, Claus even found the original home for sale, but because someone else had been interested already before him, he couldn't get it. Finally, in 2001, after 5 long years of waiting, Claus purchased the first Eisenhower boyhood home and still owns it today.
After my Cousin Bill's passing, 2007, as Executor and President of the Jeffcoat Memorial Foundation, I had the job to dispose of Bill's possessions. When I came to the voluminous Ike material in Bill's possession, there was only one thing to do with it, and that, of course was to give it to Claus for his Ike Museum!
Trivia: Bill's dog was named "Coke" because he made a lot of $ on Coca Cola stock that financed the start of the well-known and generous Jeffcoat Memorial Foundation.
*Special thanks to Mr. Burklund for sharing this great story!*
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5 Star Reviews - Joe Snuffy's
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"The proudest thing I can claim is that I am from Abilene."
Dwight D. Eisenhower
June 22, 1945
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Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad
The Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad's 2018 schedule is now available online. Book early to reserve prime dates!
Historic Home & Barn Tours
Hollinger House & Barn and Prospect Park
2nd Saturdays
May-October
Includes lunch
Reservations required.
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Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum & Boyhood Home
Thursday, April 26
Noon - 1:00 p.m.
The United States and the Holocaust
Visitors Center Auditorium
Presentation by Mike R. Russell, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of History
Kansas Wesleyan University
Dr. Mike Russell will present "The United States and the Holocaust" on Thursday, April 26th, at noon in the Visitors Center Auditorium. The free program includes a light lunch.
The April Lunch & Learn program continues a month-long focus on Holocaust awareness. Dr. Russell's presentation will concentrate on two key areas: "What and when did the U.S. know?" and "The Holocaust in the American consciousness today."
Dr. Russell is an Associate Professor of History and Chair of the History Department at Kansas Wesleyan University. He began Holocaust Remembrance and Genocide Awareness Week in 2007 as a way of raising awareness about the Holocaust and the ongoing problem of genocide as a way for KWU to reach out to the regional
Saturday, May 12
11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Library Presidential Courtyard
The annual Mother's Day Tea will feature America's First Ladies Man Andrew Och. The program begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 12 in the Library building courtyard. Tickets are $15 and may be purchased online at
http://bit.ly/2mpUSEA
before May 7.
First Ladies Man Andrew Och is an award-winning television producer and author. He returns to Abilene to present Volume Two of his book documenting the stories of our country's First Ladies titled "Unusual For Their Time." In 2012, he began a historical journey as he traversed America for over a year documenting the lives of every First Lady of the United States for the C-SPAN series "First Ladies: Influence And Image."
Och has published two books from his research, "Unusual For Their Time: On the Road with America's First Ladies," Volumes One and Two. Both books are for sale in the Eisenhower Presidential Library gift shop or online at
www.ILikeIkeStore.com.
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Great Plains Theatre
Cinema:
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Upcoming events:
- Reitz & Rust Spring Vintage Market - April 28
- Arts & Ales - April 28
- Fly-In Breakfast - May 5
- Old Abilene Town opening weekend - May 5 & 6
- Abilene CVB Tourism After Hours - May 10
- Antique Fest - May 12
- Home & Barn Tours @ Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad- May 12
- Mother's Day Tea @ Eisenhower Presidential Library - May 12
- Car & Truck Show @ Holm Automotive Center - May 19
- Symphony & Sunset @ Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum & Boyhood Home - Eisenhower Presidential Library lawn
- Camelot @ Great Plains Theatre - June 8-10, 12-17
- Independence Day Celebration - July 4
- The Lion in Winter @ Great Plains Theatre - July 13-15, 17-22
- Central Kansas Free Fair - August 1-6
- Wild Bill Hickok Rodeo - August 2-4
- National Cowboy Poetry Rodeo - August 2-4
- Shrek the Musical @ Great Plains Theatre - August 10-12, 14-19
- Not Another Christmas Letter @ Great Plains Theatre - November 30-December 2, 4-9
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Share your news!
Have an upcoming event? Help us, help you. We do our best to stay up-to-date, but please make sure to include us in your event and special promotions. Please send announcements to:
[email protected].
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