Gov. Dreyfus to Emcee Capitol Celebration Oct. 15
By Neil Shively

A celebration of Wisconsin?s brilliantly restored State Capitol, postponed because of the terrorists attacks on Sept. 11, has been re-scheduled for the evening of Monday, Oct. 15.

The party in the Capitol Rotunda will include a short program and the premiere of a new video depicting the building, its purpose and its people.

Former Gov. Lee S. Dreyfus will be master of ceremonies, replacing former Gov. Tony Earl who was on the original program. Earl will be out of the country Oct. 15.

The event is being sponsored by the State Capitol Consortium, an array of contractors, including general contractor J.P. Cullen Sons, Inc., the State of Wisconsin, community benefactors and individuals interested in celebrating completion of the 13-year-long, $141 million project.

Hundreds of workers who had a hand in the project, along with people who served in various administrations and the Legislature, have been invited to the event, scheduled for 6 p.m.

The program scheduled for 7 p.m. will include short talks by Gov. Scott McCallum and Sen. Fred Risser (D-Madison), and tributes to the thousands of workers and many contractors whose skills transformed the building to its original beauty and upgraded it technologically, including air conditioning.

The program will feature a preview of the new video produced by the Consortium: "A Monument: A Masterpiece," depicting the Capitol?s role in government, what happens there and the people who work there.

The full-length 58-minute video will be shown in Rooms 411-South and 412-East during the party. The video, produced by ProVideo of Madison and written by David Haznow of Milwaukee, has been offered to schools around the state for fourth grade civics classes. Hundreds of schools have accepted the offer. The Capitol story is narrated by Gary Bender, former Madison sportscaster and now a network play-by-play man.

Sponsors in the Consortium besides Cullen and the State include the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation, Shockley Communications, M & I Bank, the Madison Community Foundation, Madison Fireworks Fund, H&H Electric Co., Inc., General Heating and Air Conditioning, Austad & Son, Inc., Lange Bros. Woodwork Co., Inc., Thomas A. Mason Co., A&A Heating and Air Conditioning, Custom Metals, Inc., Safway Steel Products, Inc., Milwaukee Marble & Granite Co., Inc., Braun Corp., Klein Dickert Co., Inc., Kahler Slater Architects, Isthmus Architecture, Inc., Monona Plumbing and Fire Protection, Inc., Alliant Energy.

Food and refreshments, including some provided by the State?s "Something Special from Wisconsin" agriculture marketing program, will be available. There is a charge of $25 for the event.

Previous Shively Article on Capitol Restoration (Sept. 4, 2001)