Mt. Rushmore and more.....evening of July 30, 2014

Everyone in the local area kept insisting that we should attend the evening illumination ceremony of Mt. Rushmore, so we decided to make this our final outing before we left the Black Hills.   Because the famous "Sturgis" motorcycle ride begins in a couple of days, there were LOTS of bikers in this evening's crowd.  We settled into the outdoor arena on a "chamber of commerce weather" evening.

 The ceremony began with a Park Ranger going through all of the significant events in our country's history on July 30th.  Next, we sang the National Anthem and watched an informative video about the four presidents of Mt. Rushmore.

 Finally, as the colors were to be retired, the Park Ranger asked that all veterans come down to the stage to help.  It was amazing to watch so many, many veterans walk to the stage, but what was even more impressive was the reaction of the crowd.  The crowd continued an enthusiastic applause until every veteran (probably close to 100) was on the stage.  Afterwards, the Park Ranger had each veteran say his/her name and branch of service.

To think that this ceremony is repeated night after night is another example of the fine folks located in America's heartland.  It was definitely an evening to remember!