ROCKFORD (WIFR) -- Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum and Gardens, a Victorian home with deep roots in Rockford, is competing against other sites across the country to get the most votes in This Place Matters, a Community Challenge program with a prize of $25,000 to the top vote-getter.

The competition, sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, began Sunday, Aug. 15, and ends on Wednesday, Sept. 15.

You can vote online by visiting: http://www.preservationnation.org, then click on “This Place Matters,” and click on “Community Map” and click on the location icon in northern Illinois for Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum and Gardens. This will take you to the Tinker Webpage where you can read our information and place your vote.

Also, you can use the direct link http://my.preservationnation.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=9365&security=2862&s_interest=2969. There is only one vote per person, per screen name; so please send the link to family and friends and encourage them to vote for Tinker.

The program was created to spread awareness about special places that define our national heritage and help organizations start conversations in their community about places that matter.