If you're going to have a big party, it's a good idea to plan well in advance and that's what the city of Gainesville is doing as officials look ahead to the city's bicentennial on November 30, 2021.
What city staff needs right now is some help from Gainesville citizens, according to Gainesville Public Relations Manager Christina Santee.
"We're looking for anything that might help tell a story about Gainesville," Santee said. "Old photos, video clips, newspaper or magazine clippings, letters, old Gainesville memorabilia - anything you have, we would love to take a look at."
Santee said it's even better if those making contributions know the story behind the memorabilia.
"Any kind of names you can offer, a location of a photo, a date, a year...we'd love to get as much information as possible," Santee said.
Santee also said city staff believes now is a good time for people to sift through old photos and memorabilia, since so many people are spending more time at home during the coronavirus pandemic. With that in mind, however, Santee points out city offices remains closed, so any submissions for the bicentennial must be done electronically at this point.
Santee said the idea is to share pieces of the community-submitted history on various platforms for an entire year leading up to the actual date of the bicentennial. Memories would be shared on social media platforms as well as the city website.
Santee said she is happy to answer any questions about the project via email. Her email address is [email protected].
To read more and to find out how to submit electronic entries for Gainesville's bicentennial, follow this link.
