By John Ellement, The Boston Globe
Soon, someone will be able to drive around bragging they are the state’s number one patriot.
On Dec. 11, a charity helping relatives of Massachusetts’ Sept. 11 victims will be auctioning off the first 100 of a new series of specialty license plates that feature a dramatically billowing American flag and the slogan, “United We Stand.”
Authorized by lawmakers and Acting Governor Jane Swift to memorialize the terrorist attacks and the public’s response, the low-numbered plates have been handed to the Mass. 9/11 Fund so the charity can continue to send money to relatives of the 177 state residents who died in the attacks.
For a $50 entry fee, people will be able to bid in a silent auction for plates numbered 26 through 100, said fund board member Peter Dimond. The first 25 will be offered in a traditional auction because organizers expect those will draw the most intense bidding activity - and the most money.
“There is a tremendous amount of interest in the low-numbered plates,” Dimond said. “The fact that this raises money for a good cause is an added benefit. . . . If you want a low-numbered plate, now is the time.
The Registry of Motor Vehicles is accepting applications for other “United We Stand” plates through its Web site (www.massrmv.com). The cost is $60 - the standard $20 fee, plus $40. The Mass. 9/11 Fund will get half the extra fee while the state will use 25 percent to buy antiterrorism equipment for local police and fire departments and to help finance an antiterrorist reward program, according to the RMV’s Web site.
Information on the event at the Westin Copley Place can be found at www.massfund.org.