Prayer Breakfast

The Third Annual Stonewall Jackson Prayer Breakfast will be held Saturday, August 14 at 9:00 AM in the fellowship hall of the South Broad United Methodist Church. We have plenty of room, and all members are encouraged to attend and bring guests. Everyone is particularly urged to invite their pastor.  

Chaplain Kenneth Studdard is in charge of the program, and will speak on a topic of particular interest to us about our heritage and faith. This is an excellent opportunity to invite prospective members to give them a chance to see what we are about, and the significance of our Confederate Heritage.  

The price for breakfast is once again only $3.00, and an all you can eat buffet will be featured with a variety of rrieats, scrambled eggs, grits, gravy and homemade biscuits with all the trimmings. If you have low sodium or low fat diet requirements, let us know, and we can make arrangements. See Kenneth Studdard or George Perry for tickets, which must be purchased in advance. The deadline is Wednesday, August 11.

  Adam Florianczyk Honored

Living in Poland at the time the Nazis overran the country, Adam was virtually enslaved as a laborer. He has an appreciation for freedom that most of us have not experienced. After coming to the United States, he became interested in Southern Culture and the Confederacy as he studied to become a citizen. After retiring, he and his wife Madeline chose Georgia for their home.  

Adam was unanimously voted an honorary member in 1996, but at that time we did not have a formal way to document his membership. We have now been able to prepare a special honorary membership certificate, which was presented to him at the banquet. Congratulations to one of our most faithful Camp members.  

Chaplain Studdard to Speak

Camp 469 Chaplain Kenneth Studdard will be a featured speaker at the 1999 Southeastern Reformation Conference sponsored by the Rome Presbyterian Church. Kenneth will speak on the role of the Baptists in the Reformation. The conference will be held October 29 and 30 at the Forum.

Georgia Division Reunion

The 102nd. Annual Georgia Division Reunion held in Waycross was attended by compatriots Buddy Autry, Larry Barwick, Blanchard Howard and George Perry.

The Reunion was hosted by the Clement Evans Camp, and was headquartered at the Holiday Inn of Waycross. 

Attendance was good for a non-election year, and the annual meeting went smoothly. There were approximately 120 voting delegates as opposed to the 189 who attended the 101st  Reunion in Rome.  All of the proposed amendments to the by-laws and resolutions were defeated. Despite argument from both sides, the Division does not appear ready anytime soon to change the requirements for a one man, one vote rule. Thus, a Camp will continue to receive the number of votes only to the extent that it is able to get delegates to the Reunion.  

Next year, which will be a voting year, the Reunion will be held in Augusta. In order to cast the number of votes to which we are entitled, we will need to recruit six or more delegates to represent us at that time.

  Camp Yard Sale

The executive committee has discussed the possibility of conducting a Camp wide yard sale as a fund raiser. This could be an easy way to raise a relatively good amount of funds in a one day event. The success of a yard sale will depend upon the amount of participation that the Camp can muster to collect enough merchandise for a good display.

Now plans have been made for a definite date, and your input is needed to determine if this is feasible. Please contact commander Ragland, if you would either be willing to donate items, and/or be available to work a sale on a Saturday this Fall.

  We are somewhat behind in our fund raising for the year due to missing the re-enactment at Bridgeport, and not having our full line of merchandise available for sale at the Dalton relic show last February. If you would be willing to participate, please let us know.

Dr. Baker Speaks

At Forrest Party

Dr. Charles E. Baker of Birmingham was the featured speaker for the 1999 Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest Birthday Party. Dr. Baker is three time Past Chaplain-in-Chief of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and a Past Alabama Division Commander. He is a former member of the Fighting Joe Wheeler Camp of Birmingham, and is the founder of the Nathan Bedford Forrest Camp of Birmingham.  He is the pastor of the Centerpoint Independent Church of Birmingham.   Dr. Baker presented an excellent program on General Forrest, and concentrated on the aspects of his life before and after the War Between the States. His program was most interesting and was enjoyed by those in attendance.  He is knowledgeable about most any aspect of the Confederacy, and is obviously a most devoted and sincere Compatriot.

   After a one year hiatus due to the constraints of hosting the Georgia Division Reunion in 1998, the 1999 party to honor the birth of General Forrest was a big success. Fifty-one members and guests attended the event held July 16 at the Holiday Inn Skytop, enjoying a buffet of good Southern Cooking, and an evening of entertainment. In addition to his program, Dr. Baker also had a number of the most popular titles on Southern topics from his book business available for members to purchase. Compatriot and Camp 469 friend Robert "Butch" Overstreet of Trion was also in attendance with a display of popular War Between the State prints for sale.

Commander Mike Ragland co-coordinated the meeting and made several special presentations during the evening. Past Commanders Ed Byars, Alan "Bo" Youngblood, and Larry Barwick received past commander medals from the Camp in appreciation for their service and leadership. Past Commanders Mark Harrison and Mike Rice were unable to attend, and will be presented their medals at a later date. Past Army of Tennessee Commander William C. Daniel was presented with a certificate declaring him a life associate member of the Camp. Bill had been voted an Associate Member under the provisions of the bylaws updated earlier this year. Also, Compatriot Adam Florianczyk received a certificate of Honorary Life Membership, having been so voted in 1998, but never having formally received a certificate. (See related article, page 4)

1999 is the first year that the celebration has been held at the Skytop, having been at the Rome Civic Center in the past. The Camp chose to move to the Skytop since there would be virtually no building setup required, the air conditioning was more reliable, and the catering facilities were all on site. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, and as usual, the Holiday Inn buffet was excellent. Commander Ragland has already been in touch with the Holiday Inn to tentatively reserve a date for the 2000 Lee-Jackson Banquet, which was also held there beginning this year.  

Keeping Balanced

We are entrusted with a solemn duty-the preservation of the Southern Cause. If we do not defend the South, who will? If we fail to rightly teach Southern History, who will? If we do not uphold Southern heritage, who will? It is a precarious and difficult task, but we must do so. Surely we can make sacrifices when we consider those of our Confederate ancestors.

Part of our responsibility as members of the SCV is to make sure that we present ourselves in a respectable and dignified manner. Too many have a low view of Southern culture and even Southerners have bought into the Hollywood stereotype of the South (hillbillies, Dukes of Hazard, etc.).

Now when I speak of being dignified I do not mean that we must suppress the Rebel Yell or that we cannot laugh and have a good time. But I do believe that when we have a public meeting and particularly a memorial service or dinner we must remember why we are gathered and whose memory we are seeking to preserve. Dr. Baker's speech at the Forrest Dinner contained humor but did not make light of Forrest or the South. It was the model of what we should strive for as a camp.

Perhaps we should reflect upon whom we represent. The vast majority of the Confederate Army was comprised of the common foot soldiers-men who farmers and laborers. Most of us are descended from these fine men. Yet when you or I think of the Southern Cause we inevitably think of the leaders who embodied the Southern Cause. Nathan Bedford Forrest (who was not a cultured man) nevertheless carried a quiet dignity about himself that others recognized. Stonewall Jackson modeled virtue and dignity in his private life and carried that into his life as a soldier.  Our President Jefferson Davis was a statesman, dignified and reserved, a model leader.

Yet of all the Southern symbols, none can compare with the commanding General of the Army of Northern Virginia, Robert E. Lee. General Lee was a man who held the highest respect of all who knew him. He was a man of dignity and grace.  There was no sense of familiarity with Marse Robert-to know him was to revere him. I believe that we should strive for this same sense of dignity and grace in the way we conduct ourselves and present ourselves as SCV members.

A model of dignity is found in Lee's Farewell to the Army of Northern Virginia.  Lee understood the need to remember the greatness of the Southern Cause. As he thought about the sacrifices of the soldiers of the Army of Northern Virginia, he knew full well the great sacrifices these men had been willing to make in their service to the  

Cause as well as out of devotion to General Lee. Listen to the words of General Lee as he addresses his men one last time:

'After four years of arduous service, marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude, the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources.

I need not tell the survivors of so many hard-fought battles who have remained steadfast to the last that I have consented to this result from no distrust of them; but feeling that valor and devotion could accomplish nothing that could compensate for the loss that would have attended the continuance of the contest, I determined to avoid the useless sacrifice of those whose past services have endeared them to their countrymen. By the terms of the agreement, officers and men can return to their homes and remain until exchanged.

You may take with you the satisfaction that proceeds from the consciousness of duty faithfully performed, and I earnestly pray that a merciful God will extend to you his blessing and protection.

With an unceasing admiration  of your constancy  and devotion  to  your country, and a grateful remembrance of your kind and generous consideration of myself, I bid you all an affectionate farewell."

  Notice several things about the General's remarks.   First, he showed the highest respect  for  the sacrifices  of  the soldiers. No one knew better than General Lee what it had cost these men to fight for the Confederacy.

Second, there is an air of dignity about his words. Never would General Lee have made light of such a solemn Cause and occasion.

Third, there is a most reverential tone in the General's words as he pronounces a benediction of blessing upon the men who served with him. His wish was that hand of God would be upon these men who had sacrificed so greatly. General Lee would never have spoken lightly of sacred things.

Let us strive to attain to this standard in our work as a camp as well as in our personal lives. May we always honor our ancestors and the Cause with the respect they so richly deserve.

DEO VINDICE                                                            -Kenneth Studdard

Confederacy. Her diary is a record of the hardships she suffered during the War and of her unfailing faith in the Lord. Another well-known diarist is Phoebe Yates Pember. She served the Southern Cause in Richmond during the War as director of Chimborazo Hospital.

But my favorite diary is also the most celebrated-the diary of Mary Chesnut. Mrs. Chesnut had all the advantages of a liberal education and of a well-bred society. She was the wife of James Chesnut, Senator from South Carolina and aide to President Davis during the War. Mary had connections to all the leading lights in the Confederacy and we are afforded glimpses of them in her diary that we can get nowhere else.

The diary has been through three separate editions. The definitive edition is the one produced by C. Vann Woodward. He restored material that had been expunged as well as exhaustively annotated the text to help the reader identify lesser known people and events.

As you read this diary you feel as if you know Mary Chesnut. She writes in a most pleasing manner. She is very forthright in her observations of the people and events as she experienced them. She was a good observer of human character. But the thing I enjoy most is the fact that as you read, you are experiencing the war day by day as it appeared to the eyes of one who experienced it. You feel the excitement and the fear as Sumter is fired upon. You feel the exaltation as the reports of First Manassas come in. You feel the depression as word comes back of Gettysburg. And you feel the heartbreak when the South surrenders.

If you want to see the War through Southern eyes, there are few better places than through the eyes of Mary Chesnut.

-Kenneth Studdard