The Dispatch
Volume 2, 1st Edition
April 2002
Sons of Confederate Veterans
P.O.Box 761
Metter, Georgia 30439
Postmaster Please Deliver To:
April is here! It's Confederate History and Heritage
Month. Specifically, Friday, April 26,
2002 is Confederate Memorial Day. April
is probably the most important month to a SCV camp. Our Confederate Forefathers asked us, they petitioned us to
preserve their place in history for all time.
We accepted that challenge when we became members of the Sons of
Confederate Veterans. The governing
body of our organization and our founders realized how important this month is
and was to our ancestry. The
International Organization, in acknowledgement of the "Charge to the
SCV" requests that all camps celebrate a Memorial Service annually. In Georgia, most all camps due this during
our Confederate History Month. Last
year, we were a brand new camp and joined in with the Ogeechee Rifles in
celebrating Confederate Memorial Day.
This year, we will host our 1st Confederate Memorial Service.
We will be celebrating our
Confederate Heroes Sacrifices on Sunday, April 28th at 3PM. The service will be at the Lake
Cemetery. It is my hope and prayer that
all of our members take this service as seriously as their ancestors took their
service to the Confederacy. Gentlemen, this is our most important gathering of
the year. All American Celebrations and
Services that memorialize the service of soldiers can be traced back to
Southern Ladies that gathered together to commemorate our fallen loved
ones. Georgia Ladies who loved the
South and its defenders celebrated the first Soldier's Memorial Service in
America.
As we gather together for this
sacred event, please make every effort to attend, bring your family and invite
your friends and neighbors. We have
invited some area reenactors to help us and there might even be some ladies
dressed in period clothing as well.
This will be an event for the whole family and again, if you can’t make
anything else that our camp does for the rest of the year, please make a special
effort to attend.
On Saturday, April 27th,
our Brigade Picnic will be held in Mt. Vernon.
It will be right there on Main Street and you can't miss it! Commander Rooney Kea will be hosting a great
show! Our Brigade is the largest in the
whole Division and there will be camps from all over our area and actually
farther out than many realize. Our
Brigade stretches from Augusta down to Rochelle, from Statesboro over to
Dublin. If you go you're sure to enjoy
it and the whole family is invited and urged to attend. There will be horseshoe games, musket
firing, cannon firing, hatchet tosses, good Southern music, and of course,
dinner on the ground. Most likely,
Rooney's famous BBQ. All free to
members, family and friends. Take your
neighbor with you, both of you will be glad you did.
Don't forget the 1st
Nationwide Confederate Memorial Service to be held on Saturday, April 13th
at Stone Mtn. The world will be looking
and this event will surely get press coverage.
This is a great opportunity for us to shine for the world. As our brothers from across the nation
converge on us, let us take the lead and ensure that there are plenty of
Georgians there.
Finally, the Georgia Division
Reunion is quickly approaching. Last
year, we had 3 delegates; this year we'll certainly have more than 3. The most
important thing for us to remember is that this year is an election year at the
Division Level. Also, there will be
very likely some Amendments Proposals.
I've already heard that a dues increase will be a topic for a potential
vote. I understand some of the
reasoning behind a dues increase, but I think that the money can be raised by
other methods. I don't agree with a
dues increase if the organization can make money other ways. Our camp has proven that. Remember that we don't charge local dues
when you join. We have made money
without it. It just takes work. The Division should use us as an
example. We're brand new and though
we're not rich, we've made money for our camp.
A little hard work is all it takes.
Raising dues is like raising taxes and I'm against it.
May
God Bless and Guide you all,
Randy
Jason Keller
Nobles honoring Pvt.
Jesse Jasper Strickland, Co.B, 20th Ga. Cavalry
Mike McLendon honoring Pvt. William Jasper Brown, Co.
D, 22nd Ga Artillery Battalion
Herman E.
Strange, Jr. honoring Pvt. David H. Holland, Co. G, 47th Ga Regt Volunteers
Jesse Carlton
Clifton honoring
Pvt.
Thomas H. Womack, Co. D, 26th Ga Regt, ANV
Adjutant’s Report
The March monthly meeting of the Dixie Guards was called to order at approximately 7:30 PM. Brother Grady Franklin gave the invocation. Color Sgt Ben Franklin led the Pledges and Salute to our Flags. Historian Richard Crotwell read the Charge to the SCV
Treasury Report: $1070
Old Business: 1. Minutes/Treasury report was accepted from Newsletter. 2. Highway Cleanup Day was announced for Saturday, March 23 at 10AM. This coincides with the annual citywide cleanup in preparation for the Bloomin’ Festival. 3. The Bloomin’ Festival booth will be in the downtown park on Saturday, March 30th from 7AM until. We will be selling camp merchandise, sharing recruitment information, hosting a portrait raffle and a voter registration. All members were urged to attend and help throughout the day.
New Business: 1. An announcement list was shared with the camp. Commander Crooms said he hoped that this list could help spread information and also speed up meetings. Everyone was urged to share information with the camp to be included on the list. The hope is to have and agenda for each meeting and update the Announcement List as necessary. 2. Our Confederate Memorial Service will be April 28, 2002 at the Lake Church Cemetery. The time will be 3PM. We are inviting the 32nd Georgia reenactment group to participate and hope to have soldiers, civilians, and ladies in period dress. Everyone was urged to attend and bring their whole families. The public is invited to attend.
Program: James Van Eldik author of From the Flame of Battle to the Fiery Cross shared a program about his book. He spoke about some of the characters in his book and about the 3rd Tennessee Volunteers. Afterwards, he answered questions about the book and about getting a book published.
April's Events
April 13, 2002
– Nationwide Confederate Memorial Service.
Stone Mountain, GA
April 27, 2002 - Brigade Picnic
April 28, 2002 - Confederate Memorial Service. Lake
Church Cemetery
The
1st National Flag
When
the Southern States seceded from the Union each used its own flag in the place
of the Stars and Stripes. In March of
1861, the Seceded States organized the Confederate States of America.
On March 4, 1861, the same day that
Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated, the Confederate Congress adopted the 1st
National Flag of the Confederate States of America. They retained the blue canton of the United States Flag and used
stars to represent the States. They
replaced the 13 stripes of alternate red and white with 3 of the same
colors. These they called “Bars”, which
gave rise to the popular name “Stars and Bars”.
Though the newly formed Confederate
States hoped for a peaceful separation, they prepared for the war that believed
would come. They fully understood that
Lincoln and his government would not allow them to leave without a
struggle.
In Charleston, South Carolina called
for the Commander of Fort Sumter to turn over the garrison to the state and
vacate the property. Lincoln ordered
him to stay and planned to bring on the war by pretending to bring supplies to
the fort via US warships. The
Confederates finally demanded the surrender of the garrison or face
bombardment. When the warships entered the
harbor, the Confederates felt compelled to shell the fort. Lincoln had gotten his war. After the bombardment and surrender, the
Confederates raised the 1st National Flag over Fort Sumter.
Membership Drive
Contest
Don't Forget!!
When you sign up and new member
You and The New Member
Will be entered in a drawing
For a beautifully framed print
Of
General Robert E. Lee
***Drawing will be held at May's monthly meeting***
Announcing
Georgia Division,
Sons of Confederate Veterans
105th Reunion
June 7-9, 2002
Moultrie, Georgia
Holiday Inn Express Hampton
Inn The Days Inn
(US 319)
“Official Host Hotel” (Across from Shoney’s)
1-229-890-8652 1-229-616-7777 1-800-329-7466
1300 East Bypass 441
East Bypass (US 319) 1708 1st Ave. S.E.
Moultrie, GA 31768 Moultrie, GA 31768 Moultrie, GA 31768
$55 plus tax (1-4 persons)
$69 plus tax for all rooms $40.50 plus tax (1 bed)
$129 plus tax for suites $44.10 plus tax (2 beds)
The Inn of Moultrie Barber/Tucker
Crawford Bed & Breakfast
(Adjacent to Shoney’s) www.moultriebandb.com
1-229-985-2200
1713 1st Ave. S.E. 704
3rd St. S. W.
Moultrie, GA 31768 Moultrie,
GA 31768
$34.95 plus tax (1 Bed)
$37.99 plus tax (2 Beds)
$85-$125 plus tax
$39.00 plus tax (King)
** See Commander Crooms for Registration Forms **
Early Registration Deadline: May 1st
*** We will have at least 6 Votes ***
**If you’d like to be a Delegate Contact Commander
Crooms for Details**
To contact your
Georgia Elected Officials
Representative
Craig W. Lanier Representative
Bob Lane
404-656-0202 404-656-6831
912-685-4491 912-764-6813
507
Legislative Office Bldg. 220
State Capitol
Atlanta,
GA 30334 Atlanta,
GA 30334
Representative
Butch Parrish Senator Hugh
M. Gillis
404- 656-5096 404-656-5080
478- 237-7032 478-529-3212
218
State Capitol 420-A
State Capitol
Atlanta,
GA 30334 Atlanta, GA 30334
Senator
Jack Hill Senator
Don Cheeks
404-656-5038 404-656-0045
912-557-4802 706-736-1397
421-D
State Capitol 121-D
State Capitol
Atlanta,
GA 30334 Atlanta,
GA 30334
Representative
Greg Morris Senator Tommie
Williams
404-656-0254 404-656-0089
912-537-2880 912-526-7444
601
Legislative Office Bldg 304-B
Legislative Office Bldg
Atlanta,
GA 30334 Atlanta,
GA 30334
Representative
Terry Barnard **These are
State Officials from our
404-656-0177 area. Contact them! The more the
912-654-1048 better! All legislators and their
501
Legislative Office Bldg contact
information can be found
Atlanta,
GA 30334 on
the State of Georgia Website.