Dole Institute dedication a 4-day tribute to WWII veterans; Dole to celebrate 80th

LAWRENCE -- A four-day tribute to World War II veterans as well as to one of their greatest heroes and advocates, former Sen. Bob Dole, will begin Saturday, July 19, as the University of Kansas dedicates the new Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics.

Billed as the "Greatest Generation's Greatest Celebration," the dedication events culminate on Dole's 80th birthday July 22. Events include an air parade of World War II aircraft, a military encampment and vintage vehicle display, a 1940s fashion show, a re-created USO-style performance and an outdoor band concert, as well as the formal dedication.

A Memory Tent, featuring oral history presentations, will bring together veterans, including Marines who helped develop a secret code based on their Navajo language, World War II Medal of Honor recipients and members of the Tuskegee Airmen and Doolittle Raiders. Also on this distinguished list will be a number of current and retired KU faculty, ranging from a three-time prisoner of war escapee and a concentration camp survivor to an aide to Gen. Douglas MacArthur.

Dignitaries scheduled to appear include Dole and his wife, North Carolina Sen. Elizabeth Dole, former presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, NBC anchor Tom Brokaw, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and broadcaster Bill Kurtis. Former national candidates George McGovern and Jack Kemp also will attend.

With limestone walls, soaring stained-glass windows and a large reflecting pool reminiscent of Washington's Tidal Basin, the institute building already is a KU landmark. The $11 million, 28,000-square-foot facility will house state-of-the-art exhibits and the world's largest Congressional archive as well as meeting spaces and KU's first satellite uplink.

A 14-foot replica of the Kansas state seal will be one of several distinctive architectural features. Others include a 29-foot stained-glass American flag, a 19-foot stone map of Kansas, a World Trade Center memorial and a 12-foot replica of the Capitol dome in Washington, D.C., accompanied by a multi-screen video "tour" of the legislative process, narrated by Dole.

The building will be open to the public from 5 to 8 p.m. July 19; from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. July 20; and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 21. There also will be an all-night vigil maintained by WWII and other veterans from 11 p.m. July 21 until 6 a.m. July 22. Normal hours will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

Because of increased security, there will be extremely limited general parking at or near the Dole Institute. Patrons with tickets and people with disabled-parking permits may park in lots adjacent to the Lied Center on KU's West Campus. Free shuttles will run between the Dole Institute and designated parking lots on campus and in Lawrence from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday; 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday; and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday.

For information about parking, please visit www.dolemedia.ku.edu or call (785) 812-DOLE. For information about travel and accommodations, please call the Lawrence Convention and Visitors Bureau toll free at (888) LAW-KANS (529-5267) or go to www.visitlawrence.com. For more information about the Dole Institute, visit the Dole Institute's Web site, www.doleinstitute.org or www.dolemedia.ku.edu.

Here is a schedule of events for July 19 through 22:

Saturday, July 19
 • 5 to 8 p.m. Dole Institute open for tours
 • 7 to 8:15 p.m. Memory Tent (WWII heroes of Lawrence)

Sunday, July 20
 • 10 a.m. Interfaith church service recognizing the service and sacrifice of those who fought overseas and those whose efforts on the home front contributed to victory. Very limited public seating. Will be broadcast live on radio station KLWN 1320-AM and shown inside the Memory Tent.
 • World War II military encampment -- during daylight hours
 • 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Dole Institute open for tours
 • 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Vintage aircraft display at Lawrence Municipal Airport. Accessible only by free shuttle bus.
 • 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Memory Tent (Doolittle, Tuskegee, Code Talkers, Normandy, Pearl Harbor, Holocaust survivors)
 • 2 p.m. "KU Goes to War" -- faculty and other members of the KU family share their personal recollections at the Lied Center
 • 4 p.m. Organ recital by James Higdon, Dane and Polly Bales teaching professor in organ, in the Bales Organ Recital Hall, adjacent to the Lied Center
 • 7 p.m. SOLD OUT: An Evening of Dancing with the Glenn Miller Orchestra
 • 7 p.m. American Legion's Jazzhaus Big Band Event, American Legion Post 14, 1308 W. Sixth St. in Lawrence. For more information, call (785) 842-3415.

Monday, July 21
 • World War II military encampment -- during daylight hours
 • 8 to 9:30 a.m. Memory Tent (Medal of Honor recipients)
 • 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dole Institute open for tours
 • 10 a.m. World War II air parade in the skies above KU's Memorial Stadium
 • 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Vintage aircraft display at Lawrence Municipal Airport. Accessible only by free shuttle bus.
 • 12:45 to 7 p.m. Memory Tent (Winston Churchill descendant Duncan Sandys, WWII women, POWs)
 • 2 p.m. 1940s fashion show at Murphy Hall
 • 5:30 p.m. "Legacy of Leadership" dinner featuring awarding of Dole Prize to Rudy Giuliani. For tickets, contact Wendy Bridges at (785) 832-7453.
 • 8 p.m. "Salute to the Heroes: An Evening to Remember" -- re-created USO-style show. Will be shown free on two-story screen in front of the Dole Institute.
 • 10 p.m. Laser light show; stained-glass American flag unveiling in front of the Dole Institute.

Tuesday, July 22:
 • 8 to 9:15 a.m. George McGovern recounting WWII experience in the Lied Center (tentative)
 • 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Vintage aircraft display at Lawrence Municipal Airport. Accessible only by free shuttle bus.
 • 9:30 a.m. Outdoor concert with the 312th Army Band
 • 10:30 a.m. Formal dedication ceremony
 • 3 to 9 p.m. Dole Institute open for tours

Admission to most of the programs and activities surrounding the Dole Institute's dedication, including the dedication ceremony itself, is free.

For more information about the event visit www.doleinstitute.org/dedication or www.dolemedia.ku.edu.