Arts & Culture
Trading cards bring local history to life for Lehi fourth graders
Staff Writer | Lehi Free Press
Lehi history found its way into the hands of thousands of fourth graders this past school year as the Lehi Historical Society completed the first year of its Lehi Historical Marker Fourth Grade Trading Card Program.
Funded through a 2025 Lehi City PARC grant and sponsored by HADCO Construction, the program transformed the Society’s historical markers into collectible trading cards designed to make learning local history fun and memorable. Twelve of Lehi’s 13 elementary schools participated in the inaugural program.
Each fourth grader received one of two sets of trading cards with duplicate copies. Students then had to trade with one another to collect all 14 historical marker cards. Fourth graders were chosen for the program because Utah history is part of fourth-grade curriculum.
The result was exactly what organizers had hoped for: children talking, trading, and learning about Lehi history together.
Each card features one of the historical markers installed through the Lehi Historical Marker Program, introducing students to the people, places and events that helped shape their community. School librarians led the activity and helped turn the trading game into an opportunity to explore the stories behind the cards.
Jeana Christofferson, a member of the Lehi Historical Society and the program liaison for the librarians, said, “It’s wonderful to be part of educating students and teachers through Lehi Historical Marker trading cards that depict the story of a community that I care very deeply about.”
The Lehi Historical Society is excited to announce that the program will continue after receiving funding again in the 2026 Lehi City PARC Grant round.
This year, the librarians plan to introduce the cards in January or February, giving students more time to trade, learn and enjoy the activity.
“We wanted children to understand that Lehi history isn’t just something in a book,” said Lara Bangerter, director of the Lehi Historical Society. “It is all around them. These cards give them something they can hold, trade and talk about with their friends. Watching children get excited about the stories of their own community has been one of the most rewarding parts of the Historical Marker Program.”
That enthusiasm extends beyond the trading cards. In the spring, John David and Danaca Hadfield of HADCO Construction sponsored an essay contest called “Why Remembering Matters” for Lehi fourth graders, inviting students to imagine what they would put on a historical marker of their own.
The entries were impressive, ranging from family and community stories to ideas about the students themselves and what they hoped their own lives might someday represent.
Winners were invited to read their essays during the How Lehi Got Its Name Historical Marker Unveiling, where the Hadfields presented them with giant prize checks. The contest’s top awards included two $200 prizes and a $500 grand prize.
“History is important,” said Danaca, “and I love the thought behind ‘Why Remembering Matters.’ We wanted to help children learn about the people and stories that came before them and understand that those stories helped shape Lehi into the city it is today. We also wanted them to see that history isn’t only in the past. The lives they are living right now, the choices they make, and the things they accomplish will become part of Lehi’s history tomorrow.
“That is something we felt was worth highlighting and encouraging, and our HADCO family was very excited to sponsor it. We look forward to continuing it in the future and are excited to see how this program grows and what it may inspire along the way.”
To date, 23 historical markers have been unveiled. To learn more about the markers or the winning entries of the essay contest, visit lehihistory.org.
