BEATRICE, Neb. (AP) — The new quarter depicting the Homestead National Monument is being showcased at several events in Beatrice.

The celebration started Tuesday morning with an assembly at Beatrice High School that featured state officials and coin experts from the U.S. Mint.

Everyone who attended Tuesday’s launch events had a chance to be one of the first people to get one of the newly minted Homestead Monument coins.

The quarters will be available from U.S. Mint starting on Feb. 24.

The Mint’s David Croft says the new quarter pays tribute to the strength and tenacity of settlers who took advantage of the Homestead Act.

The national monument Beatrice celebrates the Homestead Act of 1862 that distributed more than 270 million acres in 160-acre plots of land.