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Happy Independence Day! WTP 7/8/24 Meeting CANCELED!

Mon, Jul 08

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Location is TBD

To recuperate from the Crystal Lake Parade, 7/7/24 WTP is NOT meeting on 7/8/24. Please respond to this email if you can help with the parade. It's fun!

Happy Independence Day! WTP 7/8/24 Meeting CANCELED!
Happy Independence Day! WTP 7/8/24 Meeting CANCELED!

Time & Location

Jul 08, 2024, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Location is TBD

About the event

We the People of McHenry County,

"Let the annual return of this day forever refresh our recollections of these rights, and an undiminished devotion to them."

-Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Washington D.C.

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Hillsdale College Independence Day Resources

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HISTORY

The Fourth of July, also known as Independence Day or July 4th, has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941. However, the tradition of Independence Day celebrations dates back to the 18th century and the American Revolution.

  1. Origins: On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence. 
  2. Two days later, delegates from the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson
  3. From 1776 to the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence.

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Words Matter.

  1.  “Liberty” means that we are free to pursue our dreams and to go as far in life as hard work and good fortune will take us. 
  • Liberty represents the fundamental freedom to make choices, express opinions, and live without oppressive restrictions.
  • In the context of the United States, liberty encompasses the right to pursue one’s dreams, whether through education, entrepreneurship, or personal growth.
  • It reflects the belief that hard work, determination, and opportunity can lead to success.

2.  “In God We Trust” means that, in America, we believe that our rights and liberties have been granted to us by our Creator and therefore, they cannot be taken away by human beings. 

  • This phrase appears on U.S. currency and reflects the country’s historical connection to religious values.
  • It signifies that Americans believe their rights and liberties are divinely granted, transcending human authority.
  • While the interpretation varies among individuals, it underscores the idea that our inherent rights are not subject to arbitrary revocation.

3. “E Pluribus Unum” is a Latin phrase that means “From Many, One.” Unlike other countries, America has been composed of people of every religious, racial, ethnic, cultural, and national origin. Out of many people we become one people—Americans.

  1. Latin for “From Many, One,” this motto emphasizes unity and diversity.
  2. Unlike homogenous nations, the United States is a melting pot of cultures, backgrounds, and beliefs.
  3. It celebrates the idea that despite our differences, we come together as a cohesive whole, bound by shared values and a common identity. 

These phrases encapsulate the spirit of America—a nation built on ideals, resilience, and the collective contributions of its diverse people. 

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 PRAYER MATTERS. Please pray for our nation as Abraham Lincoln did long ago during a tumultuous and divisive time. https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/proclamation-114-appointing-day-national-humiliation-fasting-and-prayerABRAHAM LINCOLN

16th President of the United States: 1861 ‐ 1865

 Proclamation 114—Appointing a Day of National Humiliation, Fasting, and Prayer 

July 07, 1864

By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation

Whereas the Senate and House of Representatives at their last session adopted a concurrent resolution, which was approved on the 2d day of July instant and which was in the words following, namely:

That the President of the United States be requested to appoint a day for humiliation and prayer by the people of the United States; that he request his constitutional advisers at the head of the Executive Departments to unite with him as Chief Magistrate of the nation, at the city of Washington, and the members of Congress, and all magistrates, all civil, military, and naval officers, all soldiers, sailors, and marines, with all loyal and law-abiding people, to convene at their usual places of worship, or wherever they may be, to confess and to repent of their manifold sins; to implore the compassion and forgiveness of the Almighty, that, if consistent with His will, the existing rebellion may be speedily suppressed and the supremacy of the Constitution and laws of the United States may be established throughout all the States; to implore Him, as the Supreme Ruler of the World, not to destroy us as a people, nor suffer us to be destroyed by the hostility or connivance of other nations or by obstinate adhesion to our own counsels, which may be in conflict with His eternal purposes, and to implore Him to enlighten the mind of the nation to know and do His will, humbly believing that it is in accordance with His will that our place should be maintained as a united people among the family of nations; to implore Him to grant to our armed defenders and the masses of the people that courage, power of resistance, and endurance necessary to secure that result; to implore Him in His infinite goodness to soften the hearts, enlighten the minds. and quicken the consciences of those in rebellion, that they may lay down their arms and speedily return to their allegiance to the United States, that they may not be utterly destroyed, that the effusion of blood may be stayed, and that unity and fraternity may be restored and peace established throughout all our borders.

Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, cordially concurring with the Congress of the United States in the penitential and pious sentiments expressed in the aforesaid resolution and heartily approving of the devotional design and purpose thereof, do hereby appoint the first Thursday of August next to be observed by the people of the United States as a day of national humiliation and prayer.

I do hereby further invite and request the heads of the Executive Departments of this Government, together with all legislators, all judges and magistrates, and all other persons exercising authority in the land, whether civil, military, or naval, and all soldiers, seamen, and marines in the national service, and all the other loyal and law-abiding people of the United States, to assemble in their preferred places of public worship on that day, and there and then to render to the almighty and merciful Ruler of the Universe such homages and such confessions and to offer to Him such supplications as the Congress of the United States have in their aforesaid resolution so solemnly, so earnestly, and so reverently recommended.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington. this 7th day of July, A. D. 1864, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-ninth.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

Happy Independence Day from WTP!

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