Cincinnati Chapter Sons of the American Revolution Cincinnati PATRIOT Volume 31, Issue 7, July 2017 CCSAR Flag Day Luncheon Welcomes 8 New Compatriots The Cincinnati Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution (CCSAR) celebrated Flag Day at their annual Flag Day luncheon held at the Blue Ash Crowne Plaza on Sunday, June 11. Ohio Society President Col. (Ret.) Don McGraw Jr. and Miss Anna Wilke presented the Howard Miller Memorial Flag Collection to the assembly. The Captain Howard Miller Memorial Flag Collection was assembled by vexillologist Captain Howard Miller. He and his wife travelled thousands of miles giving talks to many organizations throughout the U.S. When age became a handicap, he presented the collection of 65 flags to the Cincinnati Chapter with the stipulation that the collection must be displayed at least once a year. In 1986, an agreement was signed wherein the Cincinnati Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution was loaned this historic display. The Cincinnati Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution gratefully acknowledges this patriotic and personal donation which represents a lifetime of work and untiring research by Captain Miller. The continuing presentations of the collection permit the history of our American past to be shared and remembered from generation to generation. Flags serve many purposes. They symbolize a people and represent national pride. Flags convey a shared history. Over the centuries, military units have carried flags and colors. Colors and flags affirm group identity. They build pride and morale, and represent the group's honor. In battle, flags served as a rallying point when a formation was broken. Troops gathered around the flag to regroup, attack or retreat. Flags marked specific individuals, locations and functions such as hospitals and ambulances. Infantry regiments regularly held trooping ceremonies. Colors were paraded up and down the line of assembled soldiers to music to make sure the men remembered the colors. A guard of noncommissioned officers usually protected flags and colors. Held in great reverence, a regiment's honor was embodied in its colors. The entire regiment was humiliated if its colors were lost in battle. (continued on page 4) 1 P a g e
2017 CCSAR Officers John H. Bredenfoerder President Jack.b@fuse.net Turner Lee Wilkerson III 1 st Vice President leewilkerson@cinci.rr.com Larry W. Collins 2 nd Vice President Gary L. Duffield Secretary Michael J. Blum Treasurer mblum@fuse.net Franz B. Ott, II Registrar remingtnstorm@gmail.com George H. Stewart, Jr. Historian Shaun P. Smith Webmaster Kenneth G. Carpenter Chaplain BOM Members Gregory D. Ballman Jeffrey M. Hartman James H. Houston Bradley Jarard And All Living Past Presidents Presidents Message July 6, 2017 Compatriots, Our annual Flag Day luncheon and our Independence Day celebrations were truly outstanding patriotic events. They were definitely a powerful statement of the camaraderie that continues to grow in our chapter. Your teamwork and patriotism is being noticed throughout our community. Congratulations! We are now preparing to attend the 2017 NSSAR Congress in Knoxville, TN and we look forward to seeing Cincinnati Chapter Compatriot Paul M. Wilke receive the NSSAR Gold Color Guard Medal and installed as the NSSAR Color Guardsman of the Year. I am hopeful too that our chapter will also be recognized for our accomplishments in this past year. Remember to save the date Sunday, August 13, for our annual CCSAR Chapter Picnic. The event will be at Sharon Woods and will start at 2 PM. We have invited the Sons of the Union Veterans to join us for an afternoon of fun, relaxation and patriotism. Bring your family and friends! In the June newsletter, I requested that all the officers and committee chairmen evaluate their job descriptions and submit any revisions by September. These revisions will help us to further refine our Chapter By-Laws. I have asked Mike Blum to head up this effort. Mike did an outstanding job refining the last round of By-Laws revisions and he will certainly be a asset during this final polishing stage. Since our next Board of Management meeting will be September 6 th, please take the next several weeks to develop your suggestions for improving your officer or committee description. You may feel that your current description is just fine, but if you do see the need for more definition and clarity, please offer your perspective for improvement. You may forward those suggestions to Mike and me at your earliest convenience. Late Breaking News! We just returned from Congress and our chapter was awarded the Liberty Bell Americanism Award - This is equivalent to "best chapter" for our size category. More to come in the August issue. Congratulations Patriots! Yours in patriotism, Jack 2 P a g e
OUR FLAG DAY CELEBRATION George Stewart, Chapter Historian Flag Day was inaugurated by The National Society, Sons of the American Revolution in 1900. Two years later, the Cincinnati Chapter presented to the mayor of Cincinnati, Julius Fleischmann, a copy of a Flag Day booklet. The first national program of the Sons of the American Revolution was the observance and general display of the Stars and Stripes on Flag Day June 14th of each year. In 1891 throughout several cities, thousands of American Flags were flown on June 14th as a result of this S.A.R. Program. In 1895, an S.A.R. resolution was adopted promoting the flying of the American Flag on all public buildings on patriotic holidays. Shortly thereafter, the President of the United States ordered that the American flag be flown continuously from the White House. Previously, it had been flown only on special occasions. On June 4th, 1989 the National Society Sons of the American Revolution Congress adopted a resolution in favor of a constitutional amendment to protect the flag from desecration. The Cincinnati Chapter celebrates Flag Day annually with a special luncheon and a display of historical flags collected by the late Howard Miller, the vexillologist who donated the collection to the chapter. 3 P a g e
Gunn Receives Color Guard Medal The NSSAR Silver Color Guard Medal was awarded to former Cincinnati Chapter President Michael Gunn by Ohio Society President Donald McGraw and Color Guard Commander Anthony Robinson in a Ceremony at the OHSSAR Annual Meeting on May 6, 2017. Michael is the second active Cincinnati Chapter member to have this distinction. Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote! BENJAMIN FRANKLIN CCSAR Flag Day Luncheon (cont. from page 1) In addition to the Miller Flag presentation, OHSSAR President Don McGraw inducted eight new compatriots into the Cincinnati Chapter: Matthew Burgess, Jay Doty, Trevor Hamilton, Christopher Hamlin, Gary Oelrich, Gregory Oelrich, Leonard Slovensky and Vance Towler. Three supplementals were awarded by CCSAR President Jack Bredenfoerder: one to Compatriot Ken Carpenter and two to Compatriot Erv Chaney. OHSSAR President Don McGraw also awarded the Military Service Medal to Compatriot Brad Jarard and a Fort Laurens Regiment Commission of Captain to Compatriot Ian Cunningham. CCSAR President Bredenfoerder presented President McGraw and Miss Wilke with framed canvas art prints of the Miller Collection and Miller Collection coffee mugs in gratitude for their outstanding presentation. The afternoon was indeed a very colorful, educational and patriotic celebration! Mark Your Calendars CCSAR Summer Picnic is on Sunday, August 13 th at 2 PM in Sharon Woods Park. More details to come. 4 P a g e
Naturalization Ceremony June has been a very busy month for Naturalizations as there were ceremonies on June 9 th, 16 th and the 23 rd. CCSAR President Jack Bredenfoerder, CCSAR Immediate Past President Mike Gunn, and Compatriots Jerry Knight and Ken Carpenter welcomed 70 new citizens at the June 9th naturalization ceremony held at the Southern Ohio U.S. District Courthouse. The Honorable Susan J. Dlott presided. Judge Dlott shared the story of her four grandparents, who were all Russian immigrants with the new citizens. After the ceremony, President Bredenfoerder presented Judge Dlott with an Ohio Society Fort Laurens Challenge Coin for her patriotic service to the community. CCSAR President Jack Bredenfoerder, CCSAR Immediate Past President Mike Gunn and Compatriot Jerry Knight welcomed 70 new US Citizens at a naturalization ceremony held at the Southern Ohio District Federal Courthouse on Friday, June 23rd. The Honorable Karen L. Litkovitz presided. 5 P a g e
For the Good of the Order 2017 COMING CHAPTER EVENTS Fri July 7 th Naturalization 2 PM USDC Room 842 July 7-13 NSSAR National Congress, Knoxville, TN Fri July 14 th CCSAR Cincinnati Reds Baseball Outing Fri July 21 Naturalization 2 PM USDC Room 842 July 28-29 OHSSAR BOM/ NSSAR Ft. Laurens Bolivar, OH Fri Aug 11 Naturalization 2 PM USDC Room 842 Sun Aug 13 CCSAR Picnic 2 PM Sharon Woods Facebook Compatriots, when you view our Facebook page, please hit LIKE on the articles that are posted, even if you do not LIKE the article. When you LIKE a posting, it is now able to be read by all of your Facebook Friends. This will help spread the word and promote all of the activities that we participate in. Membership Any man of age eighteen (18) years or over, who is a lineal descendant of an ancestor who supported the war for American Independence is eligible for membership in the Sons of the American Revolution. Men under eighteen (18) may join as junior members. If you are interested in membership or need help with your application please do not hesitate to contact the Chapter Registrar, Franz B. Ott, II, at 513-384-7411. remingtnstorm@gmail.com Editor Jeff Hartman 3020 Shaker Road Franklin, OH 45005 flintlockjeff@gmail.com For More Information about the CCSAR, please visit our website at: CincinnatiSAR.org Our Facebook page also has many more photos of the events that you see highlighted here. https://www.facebook.com/cincinnati.sar/?fref=nf 6 P a g e