April 18, 2003

A special unveiling of the Eisenhower statue that will be placed in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., will be previewed in a special ceremony on Monday, April 28, 2003, at 7:00 p.m. in the lobby of the Eisenhower Library building in Abilene, KS. The event is free and open to the public. It will remain on display in Abilene until the end of May when it will then be transported and unveiled in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on June 4. After remaining in the rotunda for six months, it will be permanently installed in Statuary Hall in the Capitol building.

Kansas artisit Jim Brothers was chosen from four finalists who presented their work to a selection committee two years ago. The selection committee included Barry Badgett, Art Department, Wichita State University; Martin Bauer, President of the Board, Kansas Arts Commission; Doug Henkle, Garden City, Kansas; Bob Hogdon, Overland Park, Kansas; Mary Ann Lickteig, Wichita, Kansas; and Susan Eisenhower, Washington, D.C. Dennis Medina, Eisenhower museum curator, served as an advisor to the committee.

The statue design is based on the famous World War II photograph taken on June 5, 1944, as Eisenhower visited members of the 101s Airborne before they departed for the invasion of Normandy. The bronze statue is nearly 8 feet tall, and weighs over 500 pounds. The project was spearheaded by U.S. Representative Todd Tiahrt (R-Kansas), in 1999. The Eisenhower Foundation was chosen as the non-profit organization to sponsor the Eisenhower statue, and Congresman Tiahrt led the Statue Board of Representatives, which included Gordon R. England, Falls Church, Virginia; Mark Heitz, Topeka, Kansas; Greg Kelley, Arkansas City, Kansas; and Gen. Gordon Sullivan, Arlington, Virginia. Honorary Board members include Dwight D. Eisenhower’s son John, and grandchildren, David, Anne, Susan, and Mary Eisenhower.

Dan Holt, Director of the Eisenhower Library, said, “It is wonderful that we can host the statue at the Eisenhower Library, enabling many Kansans and other visitors to see it before it travels to Washington. The lobby of the Library building will remain open following the Abilene unveiling until 7:00 p.m., and the lobby lights will remain on until 9:00 p.m. so it is visible through the windows to allow as many people as possible to view it from April 28 until it departs for Washington.”

The public is invited to the unveiling on April 28 at 7 p.m. in the lobby of the Eisenhower Library. A reception will follow in the courtyard. Reservations can be made by calling the Eisenhower Library at 785-263-4751 or toll free 877- RING IKE no later than April 20.

The Eisenhower Library is one of ten Presidential libraries operated and maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.