MITCHELL, SD (Mitchell Now) — New banners honoring active-duty soldiers deployed overseas now line Main Street in Mitchell.
The previous banners showed the downtown business district throughout history with an emphasis on the Corn Palace. After years exposed to the wind, snow, and intense summer sun, they had become weathered. Mitchell Main Street and Beyond Executive Director Elizabeth Luczak wanted to replace them with a patriotic display for America 250.
Phase I included 39 banners showing soldiers currently enlisted in the 665th Support Maintenance Company and 147th Army Band of the South Dakota Army National Guard. The units are currently serving at the Grafenwöhr Training Area in Germany. They were installed last week.
Phase II will add another 50 banners to lightposts along the heavily traveled road. Luczak hopes to have them up by July 4th. To accomplish that, applications nominating someone for a banner must be submitted to Mitchell Main Street and Beyond by this Friday. For those interested, the phone number is 605-990-4500 and the email address is MMSDirector@MitchellSD.com. The cost to put up the banners is $200, which Luczak says covers getting the banner made and the bracket that will fix it to the post. Phase II is open to service members of any branch with ties to the area, whether active-duty or retired, living or dead.
Luczak’s wish is for the banners to hang for three years. She then plans to donate them back to the families while they are still in good condition, so that they can be preserved for generations to come.
In addition to Mitchell Main Street and Beyond, the banner project relied on the Veterans of Foreign Wars chapter in town, the Department of Veterans Affairs, American Legion, and Exchange Club to be fully realized. The City of Mitchell Parks and Recreation Department is responsible for hanging the banners.
