Look at All that We Accomplished in 2021!

Please take a moment to appreciate all that DAR achieved in 2021! I am proud that we demonstrated the vibrancy and relevancy of our mission by Rising and Shining throughout the year, and I am immensely grateful for all that you gave of yourself to our enduring mission. Your individual contributions, when combined with those of your chapter, and then your state, and ultimately our National Society, add to what we together accomplished worldwide – and the cumulative impact is truly astounding. As of this week, our members have donated 2.8 million hours of community service – and, of course, thousands more hours will be inputted in the days leading up to the reporting deadline of February 1. Please be sure to add yours to our easy-to-use tally on the Members’ Website!

It is also a joy for me to share with you highlights of some of the noteworthy accomplishments that took place at your National Headquarters during the last year:

Completed Constituton Hall's Next Act

The largest single-administration President General’s Project in the history of the National Society has been completed, and fundraising to finance it is nearing the finish line. From removing and replacing more than 18 inches of concrete floor to adding 96 tons of reenforcing steel to the overhead superstructure, our Auditorium has been completely renovated and restored to its original appearance. New seats, an innovative laylight LED lighting system, custom carpeting, replicated State Seals, reproduced tier lighting sconces, improved acoustics and an overall fresh new appearance are all elements of the massive and successful project, which totals nearly $15 million.

Honored Our Patriots

We launched the “Our Patriots DAR Podcast” in July, and thousands of followers are now learning about the Revolutionary War men and women who are featured in each of the editions. (Find it where you listen to other podcasts.) We developed our own Honoring our Patriots coloring book and implemented a new high school-level essay contest focused on the Patriots of the American Revolution. Our E Pluribus Unum Educational Initiative to raise awareness of Patriots of color and other overlooked men and women has advanced: A researcher has been hired to identify additional such Patriots and a Patriots of Color Database is now available via our Genealogical Research System. We also launched a new DAR Museum online exhibit, Remembrance of Noble Actions: African Americans and Native Americans in the Revolutionary War.

Uninterrupted HQ Operations

Though pandemic-related closures heavily impacted our headquarters during the first half of the year, our hard-working staff continued to ensure that our Society functioned without interruption. Mail continued to be handled, Applications were reviewed, DAR Store orders were filled, the DAR Insignia Store progressed, historic marker applications were approved, dues/credentials/transfers/disbandments were processed, etc. Our team members found new and innovative ways to ensure that our progress continued and that our Staff and building remained both safe and secure. We returned to full staffing on site in July, and welcomed 17 State Delegations to headquarters in the autumn as we reopened for full operations. A full quarter of our employees have been hired since the start of the pandemic.

Made History in Europe

For this first time since our 1890 founding, the Daughters of the American Revolution officially visited The Netherlands to recognize Dutch contributions to our nation’s independence. Our week-long journey included a tour to Leiden, home to the Pilgrims, with wreath laying in memory of the Pilgrim mothers. We also toured Leiden University, where John Quincy and Charles Adams studied while their father was the first American ambassador there. The highlight of the trip was dedication of a bronze plaque on Amsterdam’s Museum of the Canals, the very building in which Adams negotiated loans from Dutch bankers. Our travel also included a visit to the Royal Library, the National Archives, the Freedom Museum and the American Cemetery at Margraten, where 8,300 U.S. service members are interred. We visited The Hague and were welcomed for a reception at the residence of the U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands. I then continued in Europe as a guest of the Society of the Honor Guard of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to commemorate the centennial of the 1921 journey to honor America’s unknown war dead.

Now, if we accomplished all of this amidst a continuing global pandemic, just imagine what we can do in 2022! Thank you for being a part of Today’s DAR – we do, indeed, make an astounding difference!