The transformation of a 30-ton boulder into Greene County’s Freedom Rock has begun.
Artist Bubba Sorensen arrived in Jefferson Tuesday. He primed the rock immediately and started painting Wednesday morning. As of 10:30, an American flag was developing on the east side of the rock.
Sorensen was satisfied with the rock selected for the project. “It’s hard to find a perfect surface, but this one has some nice flat, smooth surfaces. That’s all you can ask for,” he said.
One of his goals in the Freedom Rock project is to bring the state together. “It pushes people to go on the back roads, to visit places they wouldn’t go to see the rocks,” he said.
Each rock should be considered as part of a 99-piece puzzle, according to Sorensen. “No one rock is going to show all five branches of the service or commemorate all veterans. I ask counties to suggest something unique. I learn something different with every rock I paint,” he said.
The Greene County Freedom Rock will feature, among other things, the 1919 military convoy that traveled across the country on the Lincoln Highway. Lt Col Dwight D. Eisenhower was an observer on the convoy. The convoy camped overnight at the fairgrounds, within sight of the new Freedom Rock Park.
The Freedom Rock will be unveiled at a brief ceremony next Thursday, Oct. 27, at 4 pm.
The Freedom Rock committee will serve soup and sandwiches afterward at Clover Hall on the fairgrounds. Patriotic music will be provided by Mojo Productions. A free will donation will be accepted to benefit the Freedom Rock project.
Total cost for the Freedom Rock project is estimated at $45,000.
