(Mason City, Iowa)- First Citizens Heritage Club will host a Veterans’ Day program on Thursday, November 10, 2005, at 2:00 p.m. in the Heritage Room at First Citizens National Bank in Mason City (2601 Fourth Street SW). The program, entitled “Just Before the Battle Mother: A Visit From a Civil War Soldier,” is underwritten by Humanities Iowa, a private, non-profit state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

A cultural resource for Iowans since 1971, Humanities Iowa offers many cultural and historical programs and grants to Iowa’s communities. The presentation is free and open to the public, but reservations for the event are required. Please call Patty at 423-1600 to make your reservation by November 7, 2005. After a brief overview of Iowa’s involvement in the Civil War, the audience is introduced to a returning Civil War soldier (played by O. J. Fargo). Audience members are encouraged to ask questions and engage in a dialogue with the “soldier,” who will stay in character while answering. The speaker will bring along a full roster of all men who served in and from Iowa in the Civil War to enable audience members to check for ancestors who served. Mr. Fargo will dress in full Union Army regalia for the presentation and will present the point of view of the war from an individual soldier’s experience.

O. J. Fargo is the Director of Media Services and a Social Studies Consultant for the Green Valley Area Education Agency in Creston. He is also the president of the Army of the Southwest, a group of Civil War re-enactors headquartered in Adel.

For more information about Humanities Iowa, please visit their web site at www.humanitiesiowa.org, or call them for more information at 319-335-4153. For more information about First Citizens Heritage Club, please contact Patty Paul, Heritage Club Coordinator for Mason City at 641-423-1600.