(Glad to Have Been) Deep in the Heart of Texas

They say, “Everything is big in Texas.” After visiting with the Texas Daughters for their 121st State Conference, I can confirm that certainly applies to their hearts. These passionate and devoted women celebrated 125 years of service in the Lone Star State, and I was honored to be their guest for their “star-studded” anniversary celebration.  

State Regent Susan Greene Tillman’s administration theme is “Reflecting the Light through Friendship and Service,” and her symbol is the five-pointed Texas Star, surrounded by a braid that represents the interwoven strength of her Daughters working together in support of historic preservation, education and patriotism. With more than 19,700 members in 202 chapters, the Texas State Society is the largest in the National Society. It has grown by nearly 12 percent in the last five years with steady year-over-year increases; after witnessing the camaraderie and purpose on display in Dallas, it is easy to understand why. These women are dynamic!

All this after raising more than $100,000 to support a veterans’ mental health unit as part of Mrs. Tillman’s project and collecting $7,300 worth of goods such as sweatshirts and pants to be delivered to Texas veterans.  They also supported Junior Membership, the Children of the American Revolution, a Texas-based scholarship, the digitization of recently discovered land reparation documents and many other committee endeavors.   

Their financial generosity was astounding, but equally evident was the love these women feel for each other, united in service through our compelling DAR mission. Workshops, reports and tables all reflected the vibrancy of active involvement in our Society, but it was their sense of genuine and heartfelt friendship that was most on display.

Those of us who attended could not help but be reminded that the mission of DAR matters more than ever before, as evidenced by the Conference’s outstanding award winners. I particularly enjoyed meeting two of them during Saturday evening’s National Defense Night. Gordon R. England was presented the DAR Medal of Honor in recognition of his service as Deputy U.S. Secretary of Defense and two appointments as U.S. Secretary of the Navy following his keynote address. Also presented the prestigious DAR Medal of Honor was Sgt. First Class Dana Bowman, U.S. Army Ret. A Special Forces Soldier and a member of the U.S. Army’s elite parachute team, the Golden Knights. Dana Bowman is a double amputee who lost his legs in a training accident in 1994. Nine months later, he turned this tragedy into a triumph when he became the first double amputee to re-enlist in the United States Army. He is today a motivational speaker, often to wounded warriors.

Most state conferences and many chapter meetings in the weeks ahead have understandably been canceled or postponed. While we keep our social “distances,” let us not forget the importance of continuing to support our DAR mission, to honor Americans like these two fine men and to replenish our DAR friendships in ways that we are able. 

In fact, I will follow Mrs. Young’s lead and issue you a challenge: will you use this new-found computer time to reach out to eligible friends and family to encourage them to join DAR? Wouldn’t we all be so delighted to follow the lead of Texas to “think big” and welcome a record number of new women to our important work in the year ahead? Let’s reach for a goal of increasing net membership by 10 percent by year’s end. Can we do it? Of course we can!