A special supplement to the

November 2014

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Ag Fest is a family friendly festival, designed to educate and entertain. Our goal is to highlight the importance of agriculture in observance with National Farm City

Week. Its participants show the ag-ricultural industry and its suppliers impact the lives of all citizens every day, no matter where they live. Ag Fest is a one-day event that honors Florida’s Agricultural Heritage. More important, the many commodities produced in DeSoto County, Flori-da, a unique semi-tropical produc-tion area in the United States.

Citrus, cattle, and watermelons are the most common agricultur-al products in DeSoto County but peaches, blueberries, native plants, tomatoes, and a variety of other row crops are also grown locally. Other agricultural related businesses in the area include juice processing plants,

sod farms, honey production, herb farms, organic farms, irrigation applications, crop hauling, black-berries, grove maintenance, and fish farms.

This year will mark out 4th annual event and we begin our activities with a kick-off to the Ag Fest Banquet to honor our legends and a young farmer of the year. This year our banquet will be held Friday, Nov. 14 at the Turner Civic Center. Tickets are on sale at the Turner Center for $30 per person or you can reserve a table for eight for $300.

Participants and guests travel from aross Florida to share and see how agriculture shapes our lives. For

some, agricultural pursuits provide production employment and for others, it is an educational outlet to pass on the knowledge and opportu-nities of an industry that many take for granted. Individuals and orga-nizations enjoy agricultural related leisure activities and hobbies.

Please join this community effort to put our way of life, front and center, on November 22, 2014. With your involvement we can secure the continuation of this annual event.

For more information, contact Jody Sullivan, Ag Fest Committee Member 863-993-4807.

2014 Ag Fest Planning CommitteeBack row from left: Joe Gallimore, Tim Vowels, Katie Marks, Cary Mercer, Jan Schmitz, Jody Sullivan, Jerrod Gross, Randy Coldiron. Front row: Denise Pilarski, Heather Nedley, Mandy Hines, Kristi Popa, Anna Beswick, and Janet Harvin. Not pictured: Margie Turner and Jolene Westberry.

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our veterans Remembering our veterans our veterans On Remembrance Day, we honor the members of our armed forces who served and made the ultimate sacrifice. Their courage and dedication will always be remembered.

Bit s NBit s N Bit s N Peace’sPeace’s Peace’s Gift Boutique

1128 SE Airport Rd. Arcadia

(863) 494-0177

Lest we forget.

1442 SW Hwy. 17, Arcadia, FL 863-494-1866

Fender Auto Parts

Rodger B. Fender

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General layout for the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall events taking place December 4-7, 2014.

COME HONOR ALL OUR VETERANS December 4-7, 2014Turner Agri-Civic Center

2250 NE Roan Street Arcadia, FL 34266 • 863-993-4807 www.turnercenter.com

FREE ADMISSION AND PARKING*** OPEN 24 HOURS ***

VENDORS AND FESTIVITIES DAILY

Live Music & Dance Friday 7pm-9pm

Arcadian | Page 4 Wednesday, November 12, 2014

DeSoto County Proudly Presents

By Susan E. Hoff manArcadian Editor

A replica of the Th e Wall is coming to DeSoto County in December. DeSo-to is fortunate to have Th e Vietnam Traveling Wall here from Dec. 4 through Dec. 7, allowing the county to hold its annual Pearl Harbor Day ceremony next to this replica, a commemoration of our entry into World War II in front of a symbol of the Vietnam War.

Th e Vietnam Veterans Memorial — more commonly just called “Th e Wall” — has been a destination in our nation’s capital for countless veterans, their families and friends since its dedication in 1982. Commissioned in 1979 to honor service members who died or were missing in action during the Vietnam War, it includes more than 58,000 names engraved on two panels of gabbro (a dark, coarse-grained rock) whose surface is highly polished. Visitors can see their own refl ections as they gaze at the names engraved on the wall.

Th e original Wall is in Washington, D.C. in Constitution Gardens, north of the Lincoln Memorial. While three million people visit the wall annually, not everyone can make the trip.

Th e Vietnam Traveling Wall was designed to be 3/5 the size of the original Wall in Washington, D.C. It is six feet tall and almost 300 feet long from one end to the other. It is made portable so that it can be transported to any place in the country, making it accessible to many. It is sponsored by the Vietnam and All Veterans of Brevard, a nonprofi t veterans organization formed in 1985.

Th e Traveling Wall crisscrosses the United States. Over Memorial Day weekend it was in West Virginia; next it will head to Illinois, then Mississippi, and will be in Ohio over the Fourth of July.

Th e Traveling Wall accurately represents the original aft er which it is patterned. Although it is made of materials that are easier to transport, each name carved on the original also appears on the replica.

December 4-7, 2014

For more information about this event, please email Lee Gallagher at veterans@desotobocc.com or call 863-993-4860For vendor registration, please email Jody Sullivan at j.sullivan@desotobocc.com or call 863-993-4807

For information about Arcadia lodging and accommodations please visit, www.visitdesoto.com

Thursday, December 4, 2014Wall set up 8 am until completionWall locater tent open until 9 pm

Vendor set up Helo static display arrives

Opening ceremony – Sunset24 hour security starts

Vietnam Memorabilia tent set up

Friday, December 5, 2014Wall locator tent open 9 am - 9 pm

Vendors openHelo static display

9:30 am - 2 pm DeSoto County School Touring the WallVietnam Memorabilia tent open

POW/MIA ceremony 5 pmConcert in Turner Center 7pm

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DeSoto County Proudly Presents

Bringing the Wall here

DeSoto County’s Veterans Service Offi cer, Lee Gallagher, said, “We are very fortunate to be able to host the wall over Pearl Harbor Day. A lot of peo-ple in the county worked hard to bring it here. But now, we have to raise the money needed to fund it.”

A little less than half of the roughly $25,000 needed has been raised thus far, Gallagher said. Several fundraising events are being planned and dona-tions are being solicited. If more funds are raised than needed to display Th e Wall, the balance will be donated to organizations which help veterans and their families.

“When it arrives in our area, the Traveling Wall will be escorted by the DeSoto County Sheriff ’s Offi ce, the Arcadia Police Department and DeSoto County Fire Rescue, along with several motorcycle groups and veterans or-ganizations,” Gallagher said. It will be set up in front of the Turner Agri-Civic

Center on Dec. 3 and open for the public Dec. 4 through Dec. 7. Th e Traveling Wall will be the centerpiece of what Gallagher anticipates

will be a community event. Military vehicles, a car and bike show, and a POW/MIA ceremony will all be part of the occasion, along with a Viet-nam-era helicopter display. Other organizations, businesses and vendors can participate as well. A committee of veterans is working on the details, and the Vietnam Brotherhood is coordinating staffi ng. Gallagher said someone will be at the wall to escort people to see it, and they will be able to help visitors fi nd particular names on the wall. Th ey will also have materials for people to make pencil-and-paper rubbings of names etched on the wall.

“We want to make people aware the freedoms we enjoy are not free,” Gal-lagher said. Th ey have been paid for by the sacrifi ces, sometimes the lives of the members of our armed services. Th e Traveling Wall is a stark reminder of the debt we owe to those who gave the ultimate sacrifi ce.

FREE Admission & Parking

For more information about this event, please email Lee Gallagher at veterans@desotobocc.com or call 863-993-4860For vendor registration, please email Jody Sullivan at j.sullivan@desotobocc.com or call 863-993-4807

For information about Arcadia lodging and accommodations please visit, www.visitdesoto.com

Saturday, December 6, 2014Wall locator tent open 9 am - 9 pm

Vendors openHelo static display

Car/Bike show 9 am - 2 pmJR ROTC Demonstration in Turner Center 10 am

Christmas Parade Downtown Arcadia 6 pmVietnam Memorabilia tent open

Sunday, December 7, 2014Wall locater tent open until 9 pm

Vendor set upNon-Denominational church service 10 am

Helo static displayPearl Harbor Day/Closing ceremony – Sunset

Vietnam Memorabilia tent open

Photos use with permission of Welsh Photography.

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VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!! for

The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall

December 3 & 8 - Set up and take down

December 4, 5, 6, 7 - Look - Up Book

December 4, 5, 6, 7 - 9 Some Gave All Tribute

December 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 Security 24 Hours A Da y

Please Contact Lee Gallagher at (863) 993-486 0

The Vietman Traveling Memorial Wall Committee would like to “Thank” all

sponsors for their generous donations!

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Let’s Put Our Hands Together For Our Veterans For their service and their sacrifice, we salute America’s brave veterans.

Thank you for your dedication to this great country and our values as a nation. Your courage and conviction make us proud to be American.

Kathryn J. Hill DeSoto County Tax Collector

(863) 993-4861

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The School District of DeSoto County Dr. Karyn E. Gary

Superintendent of Schools

SALUTES OUR VETERAN’S AT HOME AND ABROAD

FOR PROTECTING OUR FREEDOMS!

Thank you to all who are serving and who have served!

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DeSoto County High School JROTC

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Performing in Punta Gorda, Florida Performing in North Port, Florida

The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall Committee would like to “Thank” all sponsors for their generous donations!

Larry Kirsch RV & Bus Repair Bruce SwindleHarlan Wilson Widow Sons Masonic Riders Ken Willis Disabled American Veterans 111Joe SmedleyBullseye Bar B Q Dave Elder Joshua Citrus Desoto Jewelry Mary Margaret’s Performance AutomotiveDeSoto Memorial Hospital Desoto Insurance Larry Burch S.O.A.R. Arthur Southwell Rebuilding Treasure Alley Bobby’s Tiques The Valley Florist Suzanne Burns Freeland Arcadia Seafood Co. LLCCol. Tom Damron Lower Class of SWFL MC James De Vaughn

Canoe OutpostCarl Gause Albert & Arlene Conley Wagon Wheel Patrons Am vets Post 60 Patrons Open Road Patrons Joe Kerby Moose Patrons Charlotte Web Patrons Desoto AutomallTed Abbott John Mihalick Caroline m Lackey/Gerald Lawson Jonathan G LoefflerYates AutomotiveTwo Fat Guys LLC Michael T Lynch Carol Watson Sparks John/Catherine HawkinsBayshore Farms T & M Mining LLC Steven/Janet Smith Florida Tracks & Trails Gary S. Gyarmathy Kitson Babcock LLC All Care Medical Centers

PPI Technologies Group Olson Brothers LLC Ponger Kays Funeral Home Mare Branch Farms Circle C Ranch and FarmsHeather Cho Chung Hing Robert/Susan King Wendy Hand Edmonson Joyce Riley Lee Gabrielle Linda HoneycheckPaul/Linda Donnelly Cindy Heflin Commissioner Bob Miller Sears Patrons Country Cafe Bryans Feed Store Patron’s Building Contractors Desoto Land Surveying LLCWagon Wheel Saloon Riverside RV Park Glass, Antique or NotDon Conn—County Attorney (PENNINGTON LAW) John “Bo” Young --- (1st Sgt USMC Retired)

Am vets Post #60 Darrell’s Road & Wrecker Service Ben & Jeri Olsen Representative Ben Albritton Commissioner Jim Selph (1st LT Vietnam Veteran) Commissioner Elton Langford (Mare Branch Farms) Commissioner Buddy Mansfield (JJ Transport) Big Tree RV Resort Residents Kaler Real Estate Holdings LLC Berkshire Enterprises LLC Albert & June Decosta Arcadia McDonalds Peace River VFW Post 2824 Veterans Council of Desoto CountyBig Tree Carefree RV Resorts Eugene H. “Brother” Turner IIPeace River Masonic Lodge # 66 Ed Johnson Arcadia All-Florida Championship Rodeo Sons of Am vets Squadron 60 Open Road Bar & GrillThe Arcadian