The North East St. Petersburg Exchange Club donated a Freedom Shrine to Pinellas County Job Corps Center.  The display is 31 original documents of America’s history. The documents start as early as the May Flower compact!  The Freedom Shrine was inspired by the Freedom Train, a traveling exposition of historic American documents which toured the United States shortly after World War II.  In 1949, the National Exchange Club agreed to install permanent displays of the most significant of these historical documents in communities throughout the nation so that all Americans would have access to their rich heritage.  The documents that Pinellas County Job Corps Center has on display are the following:

The Mayflower Compact, The Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Franklin’s Epitaph, Patrick Henry’s Instructions to George Rogers Clark, The Treaty of Paris, 1783, The Northwest Ordinance, Washington’s Letter to Colonel Nicola, Washington’s Copy of the Constitution, U.S. Constitution, Washington’s First Inaugural, Washington’s Farewell, Jefferson’s First Inaugural, The Bill of Rights, The Star Spangled Banner, The Monroe Doctrine, Lincoln’s Second Inaugural, The Emancipation Proclamation, The Gettysburg Address, Lee’s Letter Accepting Washington College Presidency, Theodore Roosevelt’s Letter on Cuba, The Thirteenth Amendment, The Nineteenth Amendment, Letter Naming Eisenhower Supreme Commander, General McAuliffe’s “Christmas Message”, Wilson’s First Inaugural, German Instrument of Surrender, WWII, Jackson’s Letter Describing the Battle of New Orleans, Instrument of Surrender in the Pacific, F.D.R.’s Four Freedoms Speech, J.F.K’s “Ask Not…” Speech, Martin Luther King, Jr’s “I Have a Dream” Speech and Account of the Proceedings of the Susan B. Anthony Trial.

Our ceremony included Shahra Anderson, Senator Bill Nelson’s Regional Director, Davide Macon, Congressman Young’s Constituent Liaison, Mayor Bill Foster, City Councilman Wengay Newton, and City Councilman Bill Dudley. Pictured is the presentation of our plaque that sits in the middle of our Freedom Shrine.