LORD CRAVEN MEETING - November 17, 2012

The  Lord Craven  Chapter held their fall meeting on  Saturday, November 17, 2012 in the Nicholas Room  at the Reserve Golf Course at St. James Plantation in Southport, NC.  The meeting was attended by 37 dames.

The guest speaker was Dr. Clarence Willie, Lt. Col., USMC, retired, and resident of Winding River.  He presented a slide show and spoke to us about the Montford Point Marines. These marines were African Americans, who enlisted and served in WWII. They were segregated and trained at different facilities than white troops.  The Montford Marines were trained at Montford Point, now named Camp Johnson, near Camp Lejeune.

Dr. Willie served as interviewer and consultant for a documentary production entitled "The Marines of Montford Point: Fighting for Freedom," which was produced by the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.  This documentary was narrated by Louis Gossett, Jr. and aired nationally on PBS.  This documentary chronicled the experiences of these first African Americans to serve as United States Marines. 

In 2012 Dr. Willie completed his work on his book entitled "African American voices from IWO JIMA: PERSONAL ACCOUNTS OF THE BATTLE."  In his book he interviewed eleven of the veterans who were among the 1,000 African American who participated in the Iwo Jima campaign. This book is available through amazon.com.

Dr. Willie brought with him two retired marines, Darryl P. Monroe and F. M. Hooper, Jr.  Mr. Hooper was one of the eleven men who participated in the Iwo Jima campaign and was one of the veterans that Dr. Willie had interviewed for his book.  Mr. Hooper was also the recipient of a  Congressional Medal of Honor Award presented  to him as a member of this elite group of Marines.  He proudly wore that medal to our meeting.  This program turned out to be both very interesting and appropriate as we remember and honor all veterans especially during the month of November.

Darrell P.Monroe,  Bonnie Becmer, Dr. Clarence Willie, Carol Canales,
 F.M. Hopper, Jr. (Recipient of the Medal of Honor) and .Nora Hickam

 

Donations to the veterans in Fayetteville, NC.

Colonial Dames member, Pat Elsaesser spoke about her trip on Oct. 19th to Hertford NC to the Newbold White house there to attend the live oak tree planting dedication in honor of Mrs Shirley Spaeth who is an Honorary President General and is beloved by all NC Dames.

 

 



Veterans Day

L to R: Al Pluchos and Ken Scott members of The American Legion Post 454 in Oak Island, NC

Veteran's Day in 2012 is on Sunday, the 11th of November. When a holiday falls on a Sunday the following day is designated for holiday leave. The American Legion Post 454 from Oak Island, NC was represented by Senior vice-commerce, Al Pluchos and St. at Arms, Ken Scott. They were stationed out front of Lowe's grocery store in Southport collecting funds to support the veterans. Each contributor received a red poppy.

The donations that Post 454 received on Veterans Day will go toward sending care packages to active duty officers and also to support "The Warrior Ride."

The donations that Post 454 Debra and her husband Bob Racine are co-founders of received on Veterans Day will go toward sending care packages to active duty officers and also to support "The Warrior Ride."

"The Warrior Ride" is a a non-profit 501(c)3 organization founded in Oak Island, North Carolina with a mission of rehabilitation for our wounded war heroes. The Warrior Ride uses adaptive bicycling and other morale building events as a tool for recreation and rehabilitation. There is no cost to the Wounded Warriors to participate in "The Warrior Ride” events. All expenses are paid through donations and grants.

"The Warrior Ride" in Oak Island, NC was founded by residents Bob and Debra Racine. After holding a cycling event in 2005 they came to the realization that this would be a wonderful way to rehabilitate our wounded warriors. Adapting bicycles to injuries can be difficult, but they make it work. It was felt that getting recreational therapy and camaraderie of being with others who had shared the same experiences would put them on the road to healing. Being a Veteran himself, Bob understands the sacrifices made daily by our servicemen and women. This is Bob and Debra’s life work, their personal ministry, which brings great joy to their lives.

http://www.thewarriorride.org/upcoming-cycling-events.html

Go to the above web site to learn more about "The Warrior Ride". Learn how you could be a part of it too. Read some of the biographies of wounded soldiers who have come back from battle and have been rehabilitated through this program.
                       

November 17th Colonial Dames Meeting



The Reserve Golf Club at St. James Plantation

The next Lord Craven Chapter of Colonial Dames meeting will be held on November 17, 2012  at The Reserve Golf Club in St. James Plantation in Southport, North Carolina in the Nicholas Room. The meeting will start at 11:00. There will be a luncheon following the meeting. Dr. Clarence Willie, Lt. Col., USMC, retired, and resident of Winding River, will be the guest speaker. His subject will be the Montford Point Marines. These marines were African Americans who enlisted and served in WWII. They were segregated and trained at different facilities than white troops.

 Please e-mail Phyllis Wilson at par4wilson@gmail.com  to let her know if you are coming or not coming. Tell her who will be the driver and who the passengers will be.  You will need a guest pass. Let the security guard know you are attending a Colonial Dames meeting that day. If you need to contact Phyllis for additional information call 910-367-1775.

Directions:

St. James Plantation is located on Route 211 in Southport. Turn into the main entrance at St. James.

Stop at the gate to get a pass for the day. They will give you a pass with Colonial Dames on it.

Stay on St. James Drive and make your first right turn onto Ridge Crest Drive. Drive at 30 mph for about 5 minutes.

Make a left turn at the end of Ridge Crest Drive onto Wyndmere Drive. The speed limit changes to 25 mph.

Stay on Wyndmere and turn into the parking lot. You can park anywhere you want.
The Reserve Club House is on the left. You will meet in the Nicholas room which is to the right of the entrance.

 

Lord Craven Colonial Dames Meeting on September 15th

The September 15, 2012 Lord Craven Colonial Dames meeting was held at the Carolina Barbeque on South College Street in Wilmington at 11:00 a.m.  Speaker, Nora Hickam, chapter registrar, spoke about the book, “The Wilderness Road” by Robert Kincade. The book was about the journal of Dr. Thomas Walker as he traveled the Wilderness Trail that is now I-81.

Our Chapter was invited to attend the "Tree Planting and Dedication" in honor of Honorary President General  Shirley Spaeth at the Newbold-White House in Hertford, NC on October 19, 2012.  Pat Elsaesser and Bonnie Becmer plan to attend  the dedication and reception and represent the Chapter.    The deadline for responding is October 9.  Should any other member want to attend call Bonnie Becmer at (910) 575-0921.

 

 

We Remember 9/11

http://www.911memorial.org/ Visit this site on the internet for more information about the 9/11 memorial.

War of 1812 Stamp Available in August

Did you know that in August USPS will issue the first in a new series of stamps commemorating the War of 1812? The first stamp in the series features the oldest known painting of the most famous ship of the war, USS Constitution.

 

September 15th Colonial Dames Meeting

The Lord Craven Colonial Dames meeting is on  September 15th at the Carolina Barbeque on South College Street in Wilmington at 11:00 a.m.  Our program will be on the Newbold-White House, which is in Hertford, NC built ca1680-1730 and is the oldest brick  house in North Carolina. Honorary State President  Gwen Causey is the guest speaker.  If you have any questions you can contact President Bonnie Becmer at 910-575-0921.