The June meeting of the Chief John Ross Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution was held Wednesday, at the Chattanooga Golf and Country Club. The last meeting until September, the chapter recognized members of the community for their efforts on behalf of our veterans.
Jim Wade, executive director of the National Medal of Honor museum, was awarded the DAR Medal of Honor Recognition Award for his unwavering efforts to recognize and educate the public about the nations Medal of Honor recipients.
Josh Roe, anchorman with News Channel 9, was given the DAR Media Award for his wonderful coverage of veteran’s stories and issue’s during his Price Of Freedom segments.
As a past member of the U.S. Marine Corp. Reserves, he does these stories as a way to give back to the veteran community.
A handmade Quilt of Valor was presented to Sgt. Andrew and Tori Smith. They also give generously to the veteran community through their foundation, Honoring The Sacrifice whose mission is to provide assistance and support to meet the unique and specific needs of post 9/11 Purple Heart recipients and their families. Sgt. Smith was wounded in battle in Afghanistan in March 2012. He suffered many internal injuries and lost both of his legs due to an IED. The quilt was made by chapter member Debbie Croft and quilted by Diana Lacy with Lacy Quilting services, a volunteer long arm quilter for the Quilt of Valor foundation in Knoxville.
The chapter also honored Mary Lillian Tessman, graduating senior at GPS for her six years as the Junior American Citizen (JAC) president. The JAC is a youth-oriented committee of the DAR with the purpose of teaching school children the principles of our democratic government and an appreciation for our great country. It sponsors many service events in the community and are led by Linda Mines, head of the history department at GPS and Hamilton County historian.
After the meeting, members gathered at the Brainerd Mission Cemetery for the annual Flag Raising ceremony with the other DAR and SAR chapters in the area. This remembrance ceremony has been taking place in June since they became owners of the cemetery, in the 1930s.
The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in 1890 to promote patriotism, preserve American history, and support better education for our nation's children. Its members are descended from the patriots who won American independence during the Revolutionary War. With more than 165,000 members in approximately 3,000 chapters worldwide, DAR is one of the world’s largest and most active service organizations. To learn more about the work of today's DAR, visit www.DAR.org.
For information about the Chief John Ross Chapter in Chattanooga, visit http://chiefjohnross.gridprinciples.com/