(MITCHELL) – Twelve Rosie the Riveter Roses bushes will be planted around the courtyard at the Virgil I. Grissom Memorial adjacent to Mitchell City Hall on Monday.
Volunteers will be planting the roses at 4:15 p.m. around the inside of the brick wall surrounding the Grissom Memorial.
The roses are supplied for the effort by Virgil I. Grissom Inc. and are available to be adopted by members of the community in honor their own Rosies. The garden can be expanded as interest increases. Those wanting to sponsor a rose bush in memory of a Rosie can send a check of $25 to Virgil I. Grissom, Inc., P.O. Box 431, Mitchell, IN 47446. Include the name of the Rosie and a short story about their life so it can be included the local history archives.
Rosie the Riveter garden sign
Signs will be placed on the fence around the Grissom Memorial denoting the site.
The two other gardens were planted last year by the Lawrence County chapter of the American Rosie the Riveter Association – with the assistance of Indiana State ARRA representative Angie Timan.
Angie Timan as Rosie the Riveter
Timan spearheaded an effort to plant Rosie the Riveter rose bushes in Pope Pavilion near the John Lowery Pool in Bedford and a second garden at the Bedford Community Garden.
Timan explained that the purpose of the Rosie the Riveter Memorial Rose Garden is to ensure that the Rosies’ legacy will live on in the young women of today and tomorrow. As a nation-wide initiative, Rosie the Riveter Memorial Rose Gardens are meant to serve as a beautiful reminder of the contributions of women to our country’s success.
Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon of World War II, representing the women who worked in factories and shipyards during World War II, many of whom produced munitions and war supplies. These women sometimes took entirely new jobs replacing the male workers who joined the military.
Event coordinator Angie Timan (left) and former “Rosie” Smokey Cummings (right) break ground during a Rosie the Riveter Memorial Rose Garden Dedication Ceremony at Pope Pavilion. The rose bushes serve as part of a nationwide Living Memorial to honor the women who made history on the home front during World War II and inspire a new generation of Rosies. Photo courtesy Hayley Smith, Crane Army Ammunition Activity
