Issue Number 24

05 May 2009

www.SORfoundation.org

Greetings Fellow ‘Friends of Freedom’:

In this issue we have chosen to showcase the Foundations’ educational program, “Pennies for Freedom” and spotlight the most recent school that hosted the program.

First, a brief overview of “Pennies for Freedom”.

This educational awareness program was the brainchild of Reese Haller from Michigan. Reese is the youngest published author in America. He is only 12 years old and has written several books and travels the country with his father speaking to school groups about the joy of reading and writing (ReeseHaller.com). While Reese was being interviewed for our new DVD (you can see it on our website), Reese was asked how young school children could help build the monument. Reese then thought that children could collect pennies from home and bring them to school. He suggested that they collect enough so that if stacked up, would reach 300 feet tall, the same height as both the Statue of Liberty and the Statue of Responsibility…

And hence was born the “Pennies for Freedom” program…

Big kudos to Reese!!!

I’ve attached some documents to this Newsletter if any of you want to read about the current structure of the program…

Thus far we have had six schools run the program:

1. Payson Jr. High School

2. Mt. Nebo Jr. High School

3. American Leadership Academy – High School

4. American Leadership Academy – Jr. High School

5. American Leadership Academy – Elementary School

6. Brinley Middle School

And now for our spotlight…

The Brinley Grizzlies…

Brinley Middle School in Las Vegas, NV has 1,088 students. Their student council planned the ‘kick-off’ assembly and promoted the program throughout their school. They held a poster decorating competition, a play, assemblies and rallies, all to create excitement and understanding about the Statue of Responsibility.

Brinley Middle School principal, Sharon Beatty said of the program:

“Students at Brinley Middle School embraced the creation of a Statue of Responsibility as the counterpoint to our nation’s inspiring symbol of freedom, the Statue of Liberty. Our culturally diverse students dedicated themselves to fundraising for Pennies for Freedom so that they could participate in the creation of a compelling monument. Our student Council provided the impetus for the fundraising. Using class to class competitions, assemblies, musical productions, and appeals for lunchtime donations, our students raised $1001.36. Brinley Middle School students were excited about being a part of history.”

The schools student body president, Sandra Larios, said:

“The students at Brinley learned how to commit to promises.”

The student body at Brinley Middle School is a picture of America’s ‘melting pot’ with a broad mix of nationalities and races. The students loved being involved in the program and created excellent posters that spoke to the connection between liberty, responsibility and freedom. Demographics for the school are:

· 51% Hispanic

· 23% African American

· 21% White

Attached to this Newsletter are some selected photos of the students participating in the program.

In conclusion…

The Foundation is inviting several more schools from different areas of the country to participate in the Pennies for Freedom program. In time, our film crew (CreativeMediaGroup.com) will create a documentary film about the program. This documentary will be distributed throughout the country to all school districts who want to let their students participate in the building of the Statue of Responsibility monument…

Until our next Newsletter, thank you to all who have helped our Foundation accomplish what we have to date. We are at a most exciting and pivotal point in the monument project. Our ‘Pre-Launch Phase’, which we are now in, will see us begin to present to the potential host cities on the west coast. Several other initiatives including our internet campaign will let millions of people know about this historic movement to create a monument that speaks to preserving freedom.

If there ever was a time in our history to be about building a monument that speaks to a new era of responsibility, then this is that time… With great liberty comes great responsibility, and by combining the two we will be able to see that our freedoms are enjoyed by future generations…

Thank you to Dr. Viktor E. Frankl, Vienna doctor and Holocaust survivor, and author of ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’, for introducing the idea to build this monument. Even though he died in 1997, we remain committed to seeing his vision become reality. As his widow, Dr. Eleonore Frankl has said, “now is the time to build this monument.”

Reminder, if you have not yet purchased the Foundations new book, ‘Responsibility 911’, go to our website and order some for you and your friends…

Sincerely.

Daniel Bolz

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