Wall of Fame dedication delayed

Sidewalk displays interpreting the images on the Missouri Wall of Fame floodwall mural will be in place in early July, but a dedication ceremony for the project won't happen until next fall, a project organizer said Friday.

River Heritage Mural Association president Tim Blattner said the original plan to dedicate the mural project this spring with an official ceremony will have to wait because acquiring sponsorships for some images on the mural has been slower than originally expected. Today the association is not much further along in getting those sponsorships than it was in December, when about 65 percent of the needed sponsorship funds had been raised, Blattner said.

However, Blattner said the association is "not concerned" about the delay, but is actively looking for sponsorship.

The association needs about $80,000 to $90,000 from sponsorships to pay for the project, which was completed in October by lead artist Tom Melvin of Chicago. Melvin was also the lead artist on another association project, the Mississippi River Tales floodwall mural. He enlisted help of local artists like Craig Thomas to complete the Wall of Fame project.

The Wall of Fame project was unveiled on February 2006, an update to the original mural designed by Margaret Dement in the mid-1990s depicting famous people with ties to Missouri.

Blattner said the length of time it's taking to close the books on the Wall of Fame isn't too surprising considering the Mississippi River Tales mural took two years from conception to its dedication.

But Blattner admits the process is coming along slower than originally expected. In December Blattner expressed confidence that the remaining sponsorships could be sold by this spring, which has not happened.

"There's no particular reason," Blattner said. "This has just gone a little slower than anticipated."

The installation of the interpretive displays will complete the aesthetic the association is seeking with the mural, as the city of Cape Girardeau has already installed a red brick sidewalk in front of the mural.

Sponsorships are still available for famous literary figures, Hollywood celebrities, important women in state history and key entrepreneurs.

Anyone interested in sponsorship can call Blattner at (573) 587-2523 or Freck Shivelbine at 335-8862.

msanders@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 182