NEWS RELEASE

DATE:  April 5, 2011
CONTACT: Kristin Wannisky, Assistant Vice President, Embassy Bank, 610-882-8812 or kwannisky@embassybank.com
Mark Demko, ArtsQuest, 610-332-1342 or mdemko@artsquest.org

NEW MEMORIAL DAY CELEBRATION AT STEELSTACKS TO HONOR AREA SERVICEMEN & WOMEN

Public Invited to Submit Photos for ‘Our Hometown Heroes’ Display
Honoring Those Who Have Served Our Nation Over the Years

BETHLEHEM, PA—Current and former members of the United States’ Armed Forces will be honored during a special Memorial Day Celebration presented by Embassy Bank at the SteelStacks campus in Bethlehem May 28-30. Kicking off the weekend will be the unveiling of a campus-wide “Our Hometown Heroes” display featuring up to 400 images of veterans and active military personnel submitted by the community.

The Memorial Day Celebration presented by Embassy Bank is a three-day community event paying tribute to the Lehigh Valley residents who have served and protected the nation over the years. The event will include patriotic-themed concerts, films and programs, with a special memorial service set for May 30 at 3 p.m. The service, “A Time to Remember,” will feature the playing of taps by the Emmaus Sentinels Alumni Corps and the national anthem, a moment of silence and the reading of the names of local servicemen and women who have been lost in battle. Representatives from area Armed Forces groups will be invited to take part in the presentation.

“Embassy Bank is proud to present ‘Our Hometown Heroes’ and the Memorial Day Celebration to honor our local military and their families, past and present,” says Dave Lobach Jr., CEO, President and Chairman of Embassy Bank. “They deserve our respect and admiration for their selfless acts of courage, commitment and sacrifice.  We encourage the Lehigh Valley community to come out in full force to join in this celebration of Our Hometown Heroes."

The Memorial Day Celebration will get underway at noon May 28 with the unveiling of “Our Hometown Heroes,” a collection of large banners on display throughout the campus that features images of local servicemen and women. Each banner photo will include the soldier’s rank, branch and era of service, and hometown. Embassy Bank and ArtsQuest are inviting Lehigh Valley residents to take part in this special display by submitting images of family and relatives who are serving in or have served in the Armed Forces over the years. Images can be uploaded at www.artsquest.org/memorialday. They may also be dropped off at the Banana Factory, 25 W. Third St., Bethlehem, or at any Embassy Bank branch in the region. Photos must be dropped off or submitted online by 5 p.m. April 19; due to space considerations, only the first 400 images received are able to be considered. Complete information on “Our Hometown Heroes” is available at www.artsquest.org/memorialday.

Hours for the Memorial Day Celebration are noon-8 p.m. daily. Throughout the weekend, the community is invited to enjoy free patriotic-themed programming on the Air Products Town Square including performances by Kids for America, Lehigh Valley Harmonizers and Roosevelt Dime. In addition, S.O.A.P., the Spirit of the Airwaves Players, will perform May 29 from noon-4 p.m.  During the show, the audience is invited to sit back, relax and listen to the theatrical troupe as it recreates a popular 1940s radio broadcast, complete with all of the commercials, jingles and sound effects.           

During the Memorial Day Celebration, Embassy Bank is also encouraging the community to reach out to the Lehigh Valley’s current “Our Hometown Heroes,” the dedicated servicemen and women currently serving in the Armed Forces. At the ArtsQuest Center, families will find a special station where children can write letters to active military personnel stationed in other countries. In addition, the Lehigh Valley Chapter of Blue Star Mothers, the national organization dedicated to assisting soldiers deployed overseas and their families, will be at the SteelStacks campus all three days collecting items for care packages for local soldiers. Items that are needed include food such as gum, granola bars and hot chocolate; clothing including sweatpants and tubesocks; and personal items such as sunscreen, insect repellent, shampoo, toothpaste and tissues. The complete list of items that may be donated is available online at www.artsquest.org/memorialday.

Other programming planned for the weekend includes patriotic-themed films such as “Red Badge of Courage” and Clint Eastwood’s “Flags of Our Fathers” showing in the ArtsQuest cinemas, as well as newsreels of World War II, The Korean War and Vietnam War playing on the video screens at the ArtsQuest Center’s Connect Zone. The celebration culminates May 30, 7:30 p.m., when Daniel Rodriquez, known by millions as the Singing Policeman for his rendition of "God Bless America" after 9/11, takes to the ArtsQuest Center’s Musikfest Café stage. All active and retired military personnel will receive a special discount to the show, with tickets priced at $32 VIP Box and $23 Cabaret (regular ticket price is $35 VIP Box and $25 Cabaret).

The Memorial Day Weekend Celebration is the first of four patriotic celebrations that will be presented by Embassy Bank at SteelStacks in 2011.  Other celebrations include Flag Day June 11 (previously held at the Bethlehem Rose Garden), an Independence Day Weekend Celebration July 2-4 and Patriot Day Sept. 11.  For more information on the Memorial Day Celebration and other celebrations, please visit www.artsquest.org. 

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