By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The United States will celebrate its 250th birthday this summer. But first, the state of Kansas had a birthday of its own on Jan. 29. Being an educational facility, the Kansas Wetlands Education Center makes the most out of Kansas Day each year. Educator Mandy Kern presented more than 50 Kansas Day programs in the weeks leading up to Jan. 29. KWEC Director Curtis Wolf said the many state symbols make for a lively program.
“Kansas has designated a lot of state symbols,” he said. “Usually, these have been things that have been recognized by the Kansas Legislature. It’s usually some third or fourth-grade class that takes it upon themselves to learn the process of getting a bill in place, and they take it to their senator or representative and get that bill going to designate these state symbols.”
Same of the state symbols are more widely known: the western meadowlark is the state bird, and the ornate box turtle is the state reptile. The cottonwood was picked as the state tree, and Kansas even has its own state grass: little bluestem.
“We’ve done a decent job of figuring out these symbols, because pretty much all of these are things that can be found throughout the state,” Wolf said. “They’re not something that’s indicative of one certain area.”
Kansas turned 165 years old this year. Kansas Day, celebrated for the first time by Paola students in 1877, is now celebrated across the state each year on Jan. 29. Many celebrations including a performance of the state song, “Home on the Range.”