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Bells will ring out for Constitution
Photo
Among the members of DAR Mahoning Chapter planning to celebrate the signing of the Constitution on Sept. 17 are, in front, Dolores Ronzi, left, and Carol Hubbard and, in back from left, Priscilla Sutton, Carol Tallman and Lori Sakacs. Photo | Special to The Vindicator
U.S. CONSTITUTION
Celebrating the document
Carol Hubbard, a member of Daughters of the American Revolution’s Mahoning Chapter, spoke recently about “Bells Across America,” an event that encourages Mahoning Valley residents, churches and schools to ring bells at 4 p.m. Sept. 17 in honor of Constitution Week, which is Sept. 17 to 23. A brief history of the national celebration:
In 1955, DAR members petitioned Congress to set aside that week to be dedicated to the observance.
On Aug. 2, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the resolution into law.
The celebration’s main goals are to emphasize people’s responsibilities to protect and defend the Constitution, inform others that the document is the basis for the country’s heritage and the foundation for America’s way of life and encourage citizens to study events that led to its framing in September 1787.
The weeklong commemoration of the historic document is one of the nation’s least-known official observances.
In 1928, work got underway in Washington, D.C., on DAR Constitution Hall, which was erected as a tribute to the Constitution.
Source: Daughters of the American Revolution
By Sean Barron
BOARDMAN
It’s probably safe to say that nearly everyone is accustomed to gathering to celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah, the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Memorial Day.
But Constitution Week?
“The U.S. Constitution is the oldest Constitution still in active use in the world today,” said Carol Hubbard, a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution’s Mahoning Chapter and its former chaplain.
The local DAR chapter, organized April 18, 1893, is a nonprofit and nonpolitical women’s volunteer service organization that is devoted to promoting historic preservation, education and patriotism, according to its mission statement.
Hubbard spoke recently at the Boardman branch of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County about Constitution Week, a national weeklong commemoration set for Sept. 17 to 23.
A major part of the celebration will be “Bells Across America,” in which bells will be rung nationwide at 4 p.m. Sept. 17 to recognize and honor the Constitution’s signing, which took place at 4 p.m. Sept. 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia.
Locally, residents, schools and churches are encouraged to ring bells as part of the effort, said Hubbard, who’s also the event’s chairwoman.
“The idea is to have people honor the Constitution and remember the Constitution,” she said, noting that a bell-ringing gathering will take place at 3:45 p.m. Sept. 17 at the gazebo on the Village Green in Canfield at U.S. Route 224 and state Route 46. Anyone planning to join the group is asked to bring a bell to ring.
In school, many youngsters memorized the Preamble to the Constitution, but it is hoped that the one-week celebration will prompt people of all ages to further study “the remarkable document,” as Hubbard calls it.
To that end, the local DAR chapter has distributed Constitution kits to some area schools. They contain posters of the document, bookmarks stating the Preamble, American flags and a DVD titled “A More Perfect Union.”
Last week, several DAR members decorated Boardman Library display cases by adding a copy of the Preamble, along with bells and patriotic figurines. The displays will be up all month, Hubbard said.
During Constitution Week, the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown will showcase a collection of glass bells as well as paintings and portraits of President George Washington and others that capture the Colonial era, noted Kathy Earnhart, the Butler’s public relations director.
On Sept. 17, a group is to gather to ring bells on the museum’s front portico, Earnhart added.
Also, Gov. John Kasich is to proclaim Sept. 17-23 as Constitution Week in Ohio, and Canfield Mayor Bernie Kosar Sr. is to do the same there, said Hubbard.
In addition to protecting and preserving Americans’ rights and freedoms, the document has encouraged many immigrants to call the U.S. home, she continued.
“Other countries have looked to us for inspiration,” Hubbard said. “[The Constitution] was written with future generations in mind.”