Item B2BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY
Meeting Date: Wed. June 20, 2012
Bulk Item: Yes No KK
Division: BOCC
Department: Mayor David Rice
Staff Contact /Phone #: Tamara Lamarche
PH: 305 289-6000
AGENDA ITEM WORDING: Mayor's Proclamation declaring the month of July 2012 in
Monroe County as U.S. Great Seal Awareness Month in recognition of the 225`h anniversary of
the Great Seal of the United States of America.
ITEM BACKGROUND: 2012 marks the 2251h anniversary of the Great Seal of the United States of
America. On July 0, 2012, from 5-8 PM the Key Largo Chamber of Commerce is hosting a 4th of
July ceremony at the Murray Nelson Government Center in Key Largo, and as part of the event
activities, placement of the 12 panel Great Seal Awareness Project (GSAP) exhibit and reading of the
Mayor's/BOCC GSAP proclamation.
PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION:
CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES:
STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
TOTAL COST: INDIRECT COST: BUDGETED: Yes No
DIFFERENTIAL OF LOCAL PREFERENCE:
COST TO COUNTY: SOURCE OF FUNDS:
REVENUE PRODUCING: Yes No AMOUNT PER MONTH Year
APPROVED BY: County Atty _ OMB/Purchasing Risk Management
DOCUMENTATION: Included
DISPOSITION:
Revised 7109
Not Required
AGENDA ITEM #
U.S. GREAT SEAL AWARNESS MONTH
WHEREAS, the citizens and visitors of Monroe County intend to "rise to the occasion"
and rediscover America's founding vision of Peace and Unity;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal is a cornerstone in the foundation of the United States,
and is a national treasure in the same league with our Declaration of Independence,
Constitution and Bill of Rights;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal is the carefully crafted message our founders created to
convey their vision to the world, and to the future;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal's two sides embody the essential guiding principles
these farsighted patriots knew the United States must always follow;
WHEREAS, with the knowledge of what the U.S. Great Seal's symbols and mottoes
meant to the founders, citizens will be able to decipher this remarkable message from
their ancestors and discover its relevance today;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal reconnects us with the revolutionary spirit of the people
who gave us our freedom;
WHEREAS, it is time for Americans to give their U.S. Great Seal the attention it
deserves;
WHEREAS, when the full story of the U.S. Great Seal is known, it becomes a
compelling incentive to participate in America's future.
THEREFORE, let it be resolved that July, 2012 is hereby designated in Monroe County,
Florida as
U.S. Great Seal Awareness Month
Signed this 20`h day of June, 2012
Great Seal Awareness Project - GSAP
Page I of 3
What's So Great About the Great Seal?
A cornerstone in the foundation of the United States, our Great Seal is a national treasure in the same
league with our Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights.
Designed by some of America's most visionary Founders during the revolutionary birth of our nation,
the Great Seal is the carefully crafted message they created to convey their vision to the world, and to
the future.
Its two sides embody the essential guiding principles these farsighted patriots knew the United States
must always follow.
So important was the Great Seal that on Day One, July 4, 1776, Congress appointed Benjamin Franklin,
John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson to begin the design process that would involve two other
committees.
Considerable attention went into creating the Great Seal. Unfortunately, most historians and educators
have overlooked this extraordinary symbol. Consequently, myth and misinformation are commonplace,
and the eloquent symbolism of the Great Seal is not fully appreciated.
It is time to rediscover our nation's forgotten treasure, the Great Seal of the United States, by
educating Americans about the fascinating story of this emblem that represents them.
As a graphic link to the vision of our nation's Founders, the Great Seal reconnects us with the
revolutionary spirit of the people who gave us our freedom. Their struggle for independence is reflected
in the preliminary designs that evolved into the two sides of the symbol Congress approved on June 20,
1782.
But this is not just about the past. By knowing what the Great Seal's symbols and mottoes meant to the
Founders, students will be able to decipher this remarkable message from their ancestors and discover
its relevance today.
When the full story of the Great Seal is known, it becomes a compelling incentive to participate in
America's future.
11 -- John D. MacArthur
"America has carried on... because we the people have remained faithful to
http://greatseal.com/gsaplindex.html 5/3 0/20 12
Great Seal Awareness Project - GSAP Page 2 of 3
the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents."
- President Barack Obama's First Inaugural Address, 2009
Resources for Teachers
The United States Diplomacy Center created a wonderful Exhibition Celebrating the 225th Anniversary c
the Great Seal (2007). Click here for their web page where you can download any of the exhibit's ten panels
and reproduce them for classroom use. (Below are Panels 4 and 5.)
A trifold brochure of the exhibit is also available (PDF - 500 Kb).
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Panels 4 and 5 of the U.S. Diplomacy Center's ten -panel exhibit.
To supplement the Diplomacy Center exhibit, the
Great Seal Awareness Project (GSAP) created two more panels:
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Download 11x14-inch versions of the two GSAP panels:
Panel 11: Imagining the Possibilities (PDF - 800 Kb)
Panel 12: Rising to the Challenge (PDF - 800 Kb)
If your school or organization would like to display the Great Seal
exhibit at an event, please contact Ron Cole (below) to schedule.
In 2003, the U.S. State Department produced an excellent
18-Dage DamDhlet on the history the Great Seal (PDF - 3 Mb).
http://greatseal.com/gsap/index.htmi 5/30/2012
Great Seal Awareness Project - GSAP
Page 3 of 3
The best reference book is The Eagle and the Shield: A History of the
Great Seal of the United States. Its chapters about the three preliminary
designs offer a wealth of information that will suggest some fascinating areas
for classrooms to explore.
This extremely well -documented book by Richard S. Patterson and
Richardson Dougall was released in 1978 by the Office of the Historian,
Bureau of Public Affairs, Department of State, under the auspices of the
American Revolution Bicentennial Administration. (681 pages, 92
illustrations)
Used copies are available, and a paperback reprint was published in 2005 (by
University Press of the Pacific).
GreatSeal,com is a comprehensive website
based on The Eagle and the Shield.
11x17" posters available at the Great Seal Gift Shop
Main sections of the site (launched in 1998):
e Preliminary Designs: Ideas suggested by three committees...
Symbols on the Great Seal: Dynamic imagery from nature and history...
Great Seal Mottoes: Three little phrases with big repercussions...
e Myth & Misinformation: Separating fact from fiction...
e Peace: A founding principle...
Get a brief OVERVIEW of the Great Seal of the United States.
GSAP contacts:
Ron Cole, coordinator
John D. MacArthur historian
The Great Seal Awareness Project is not affiliated with, nor are these statements intended to represent the
views or policies of the United States Diplomacy Center or Department of state.
http:/'greatseal.com/gsap/index.htm1 5/30/2012
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Lamarche -Tamara
From: Ronaldwcole@aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, May 23, 2012 4:54 PM
To: BOCCDIS4
Cc: greatseals@gmail.com
Subject: US Great Seal proclamation - for July 4th
Attachments: GSAPJuly42012.doc
Dear Commissioner Rice,
Thanks again for offering a Mayor's proclamation for the GSAP project - copied and attached below. I'm coordinating with
the organizers (KL Chamber) of the 5-8 PM 4th of July ceremony at the Murray Nelson Government Center in Key Largo
for placement of the 12 panel GSAP exhibit and reading of the Mayor's/BOCC GSAP proclamation.
We will also display our life sized reproduction (from John Trumble's painting on the back of the $2 bill) of the signing of
the Declaration of Independence - taking pictures of people at the "signing." We've done it before at Founder's Park in
Islamorada the last couple of years and it was a success.
Please advise if any edits are necessary. Most of the words come from the insert in our GSAP brochure created by the
Great Seal web site founder John D. MacArthur - historian.
Thanks for all you do for our community.
Sincerely,
Ron Cole - coordinator, U.S. Great Seal Awareness Project (GSAP)
303-725-5594
Rediscover America's founding vision of Peace and Unity.
www.greatseal.net
Monroe County, Florida — Mayor's Proclamation
July 4, 2012
Whereas the citizens and visitors of Monroe County intend to "rise to the occasion" and rediscover America's
founding vision of Peace and Unity;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal is a cornerstone in the foundation of the United States, and is a national
treasure in the same league with our Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal is the carefully crafted message our founders created to convey their vision to
the world, and to the future;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal's two sides embody the essential guiding principles these farsighted patriots
knew the United States must always follow;
WHEREAS, by knowing what the U.S. Great Seal's symbols and mottoes meant to the founders, citizens will
be able to decipher this remarkable message from their ancestors and discover its relevance today;
WHEREAS, the U.S. Great Seal reconnects us with the revolutionary spirit of the people who gave us our
freedom;
WHEREAS, it is time for Americans to give their U.S. Great Seal the attention it deserves;
WHEREAS, when the full story of the U.S. Great Seal is known, it becomes a compelling incentive to
participate in America's future.
THEREFORE, let it be resolved that July, 2012 is hereby designated as U.S. Great Seal Awareness month;