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When a memorial service gets under way at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sharon Ossig, organizer of the Coal Miners Memorial Park in West Frankfort, is hopeful it will not be a somber occasion but rather, a celebration of the lives of the men who went down into Orient No. 2 mine to work, never to see topside again.
The memorial service commemorating the 60th anniversary of West Frankfort’s Orient No. 2 mine disaster will be held at The First Christian Church, 1001 South Cherry, West Frankfort.
Memorial organizers Steve Sawalich, president of the Old King Coal committee, and Ossig have invited family and friends as well as the Southern Illinois community to come together to honor the 119 who lost their lives in the explosion.
They want to keep the memory alive of the 119 men who never came home from work that December evening.
During the service a candle will be lit in honor of each miner and as their name is read, the flame will be extinguished. A moment of silence will mark the exact time of the explosion.
Speakers will include Chuck Wilson, United Mine Workers of the America international representative from Du Quoin, and Charles Bartoni, who lost his father in the disaster.
In past years, the observance of the disaster has been on a much smaller scale, with about 10 to 15 people gathering at the miners' monument.
During more recent events, the numbers have steadily grown.
Interest in the Wednesday event has caused the organizers to become worried about available seating.
Ossig said the church has a seating capacity of 400 and about 100 have sent RSVPs saying they are planning to attend.
Those planning to attend are not just from the West Frankfort area.
One man, whose father was killed in the explosion, will be flying in from Maryland, she said.
“We are starting to worry (about space),” she said.
The explosion is one of the worst mining disasters in the nation’s history, leaving 111 widows and 176 fatherless children.
Only one good thing resulted from the disaster, passage of the Federal Coal Mining Safety Act of 1952.
Several state laws also were changed after the explosion. For many years, keeping the memory of the miners alive was, for the most part, a private and family affair.
When a memorial service gets under way at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sharon Ossig, organizer of the Coal Miners Memorial Park in West Frankfort, is hopeful it will not be a somber occasion but rather, a celebration of the lives of the men who went down into Orient No. 2 mine to work, never to see topside again.
The memorial service commemorating the 60th anniversary of West Frankfort’s Orient No. 2 mine disaster will be held at The First Christian Church, 1001 South Cherry, West Frankfort.
Memorial organizers Steve Sawalich, president of the Old King Coal committee, and Ossig have invited family and friends as well as the Southern Illinois community to come together to honor the 119 who lost their lives in the explosion.
They want to keep the memory alive of the 119 men who never came home from work that December evening.
During the service a candle will be lit in honor of each miner and as their name is read, the flame will be extinguished. A moment of silence will mark the exact time of the explosion.
Speakers will include Chuck Wilson, United Mine Workers of the America international representative from Du Quoin, and Charles Bartoni, who lost his father in the disaster.
In past years, the observance of the disaster has been on a much smaller scale, with about 10 to 15 people gathering at the miners' monument.
During more recent events, the numbers have steadily grown.
Interest in the Wednesday event has caused the organizers to become worried about available seating.
Ossig said the church has a seating capacity of 400 and about 100 have sent RSVPs saying they are planning to attend.
Those planning to attend are not just from the West Frankfort area.
One man, whose father was killed in the explosion, will be flying in from Maryland, she said.
“We are starting to worry (about space),” she said.
The explosion is one of the worst mining disasters in the nation’s history, leaving 111 widows and 176 fatherless children.
Only one good thing resulted from the disaster, passage of the Federal Coal Mining Safety Act of 1952.
Several state laws also were changed after the explosion. For many years, keeping the memory of the miners alive was, for the most part, a private and family affair.
