RELO Roundtable…a gathering place

I have a personal favor to ask.

On December 7, 2011, Readers Digest (RD), a well-known general interest family magazine that's been a part of my life as long as I can remember, invited subscribers to get their town on the map when they announced their “We Hear You, America: Main Street, USA.” contest.

WARNING: If you're not already an RD subscriber, this contest requires you relinquish some personally identifiable information in order to vote. READ THE CONTEST RULES FIRST!

The publisher is offering a $50,000 prize and media attention to the place that garners the most support from the public.

December 7th is also the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor that eventually led the U.S. Into World War II

When a local soldier was killed in Iraq in 2007, the town of Coleman, Michigan decided to erect a universal memorial that would pay tribute to all soldiers who have served our country.

Coleman is a quaint little rural farm community nearby that saw it's population dwindle down to 1200 residents as a result of the recession. In 2009, the estimated median household income was only $31,214.

Despite the economic hardship, ground for the new Coleman Veterans Memorial was broken in August, 2010. The statues shown in the picture above represent soldiers from World War II, the Korean conflict, Vietnam, and, more recently, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The large flags that fly around the monument's perimeter represent the five branches of the United States armed services. 

Coleman still has plans on the drawing board to add a female soldier and a World War I doughboy. Each statue costs the project volunteers in the tiny community $81,100.  Details and pictures chronicling the development of the popular, mid-Michigan memorial park can be found at the Coleman Veterans Memorial Facebook page here. 

If Coleman won the Reader's Digest $50,000 "We Hear You, America: Main Street, USA." grand prize, it would go a long way to help this small mid-Michigan town complete their impressive memorial honoring the loyal men and women who serve their county in America's military services.

Last week Coleman was in 39th place out of 4,256 communities indexed on Reader's Digest site. The 70,323 votes accumulated so far were gathered using personal and professional social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, StumbleUpon and Reddit.

Do me a favor. Click on the image below. It will take you to the Reader's Digest “We Hear You, America: Main Street, USA.” contest. If you're already a registered Reader's Digest subscriber, just enter the email address you use on your account and enter either “Coleman, MI” or zip code “48618” in the voting box.

Voting ends March 1, 2011.  Those interested in participating don't have to be Reader's Digest subscribers.  The contest is open to all legal residents of the United States who are 18 years of age or older.

REMEMBER: READ THE CONTEST RULES FIRST!

If you support the cause, please distribute this post after you've voted using your own social media networks with the Share This tool below. 

Or use one of the three buttons at the bottom of the Reader's Digest site to share with friends, family or colleagues who you think would be interested in supporting Coleman's small town display of patriotic pride in their community.

Remember, enter either “Coleman, MI” or zip code “48618” in the voting box.  Help the residents add another soldier to their memorial.

And, if you'd like to invest in a child's smile in the Coleman area, click on the Tall in the Saddle link in the right sidebar and throw a couple of bucks into the donation basket.  

The small group of loyal 4-H volunteers who operate this therapeutic horseback riding program for developmentally disadvantaged kids could also really use the support.  

Thanks!

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