Heartfelt thanks to State Regent Mernie Crane and the Maryland Daughters for sharing the history of their state society and influence on the early years of the National Society. The tour of the Maryland Chapter house was a special treat. A special thank you to my personal Pages Michelle Tarlecki and July Nguyen! Definitely, I will always proclaim that I have the best of Maryland– my husband, Jack!
-Pamela Wright, President General
The 118th Maryland DAR State Conference passed in a star-spangled blur as nearly 400 Daughters and guests gathered near Ellicott City to celebrate accomplishments in support of historic preservation, education, and patriotism.
The theme of our administration is “United in Service – Bound in God’s Love,” which hopes to encourage each of us to use our gifts to serve others. With our “Patriots Luncheon,” we recognized first responders, and another banquet commemorated the 125th Anniversary of the DAR Hospital Corps by honoring nurses. Maryland’s “America 250” team made a splash with a display, photo-ops, and “Declaration” for Daughters to sign pledging “aid in efforts to observe and celebrate the 250th anniversary” of the founding of our nation.
Following the Thursday opening session, we held a touching memorial service with a photo of each departed Daughter and tributes to six former state officers. National hosted a tea for donors, and that evening members enjoyed socializing with our distinguished guests at the State Regent’s Reception in honor of the President General. Our banquet speaker was Retired Maj. Gen. Mari K. Eder, who shared about the extraordinary women in her best-selling book, "The Girls Who Stepped out of Line.” We capped the evening by announcing Maryland’s Outstanding Junior, Kathleen Bromelow Jansen of the William Winchester Chapter.
On Friday, we celebrated the work of our society with our Parade of Chapters and Committees, while our guests took an excursion to our busy Maryland Chapter House, which showcases our decorative arts collection, is the base for the state regent’s digitization project, and much more. Mrs. Wright was delighted to find the John Phillip Sousa music score of “The Stars and Stripes Forever” that our State Curator had placed on the piano. The big surprise, however, was the treasure uncovered after decades in one of our closets—an original watercolor painted by Caroline Harrison, NSDAR’s first President General and wife of the 23rd U.S. President. We had notecards made of the floral watercolor to honor the visit of our 46th President General.
Among the day’s conference highlights was the DAR Leadership Training Course graduation, which celebrated 54 completions and recognized 12 “Sparkle and Shine Triple Crown” awardees who completed all three courses. Additionally, with a nod to Virginia Daughters for the idea, we held a “Living Legacy” panel discussion among four of Maryland’s Honorary State Regents: Ruann George (2009-2012), Linda Mistler (2012-2015), Carol Larkin (2015-2018), and Maureen Tipton (2018-2021). The ladies entertained members with their anecdotes, and it was heartwarming to see the affection they share.
The evening started with a reenactor portraying Mary Katharine Goddard. The banquet was interrupted by a fire drill set off by a mischievous individual from a wedding party at the resort, but Daughters took it all in stride. Four beautiful debutantes were escorted in and presented. After dinner Mrs. Wright inspired Maryland Daughters with her message and was touched by a generous donation made by the Maryland State Society to her President General’s Project.
On Saturday we hosted a genealogy workshop and enjoyed an awards luncheon. C.A.R. children performed a magnificent “M & M” themed skit that started and ended with C.A.R. President Andrew Parsley’s trumpet call.
I am grateful for the alacrity and dedication of the Maryland State Officers and the State Conference Committee, who made planning this event a joy rather than a burden. Once again each of you showed just as “Iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another” (Proverbs. 27:17, NIV).
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