Local and state officials held a topping-off ceremony March 31 for the NC History Center on the Civil War, Emancipation & Reconstruction. This is an event where the builder, in this case Balfour Beatty Construction, places the final steel beam.
People involved with the project and anyone who attended Tuesday were to write their signatures on the long, white beam before workers hoisted it slowly into place, a little tree for good luck on one end and an American flag on the other.
I got to sign, too, which I can say was a treat. I tried to write in a neat hand, versus my typical reporter’s chicken scratch. You know, because it’s for the future and all. Even though I suppose the signature may never be seen again while the building stands…