- Having been duly elected and installed as Department Commander, I hereby assume command of the Department of Michigan, SUVCW.
- Headquarters for the Department is transferred to 3914 Larchmont Street, Flint, Michigan 48532. General correspondence to the Department should be sent to the Secretary for the Department of Michigan, Paul Davis, 535 Mayflower Drive, Saginaw, Michigan 48638. 3. I offer the thanks of the Department to all of the outgoing officers who served the Department so well and so faithfully over the last term. I particularly thank Chuck Worley, PDC, for the fine job he did as Department Commander in the last term. It is very much appreciated Brother Chuck.
- I offer the thanks of the Department to the Women’s Relief Corps, who took the lead among the Allied Orders in giving us a fine Encampment program this year. I also thank C in C Kennedy who took time out of an incredibly busy schedule to be with us at the Encampment and install our officers for the coming term. Finally, I thank all the brothers of this Department who took the time and trouble to attend that Encampment, helping us to do the business of the Department. Brothers, decisions are made by those who show up. Thanks for being there to help.
- I offer the thanks of the Department to all those brothers filling elected and appointed offices for the current term as well as all of those who are currently serving the Order on committees.
- Web Sites – I urge each Camp Signals Officer and Camp Commander to check your Camp’s Web Site. If it needs to be updated, please do that. Brothers, some of these haven’t been updated for months or years. If someone needs to find out about your Camp or how to contact a particular officer, it can be frustrating to say the least if they are getting bad information from our own on line services.
- The National Encampment will be held this year in Overland Park, Kansas, which is in the greater Kansas City area. Dates for the Encampment will be August 12-15, 2010. As many brothers as can make the Encampment are encouraged to go. Pre-registration materials are now available at the National Web Site, www.SUVCW.org. To facilitate carpooling and hotel accommodations, our Senior Vice Commander, Dave Arnold, will be happy to see if he can’t pair people up to drive out together, who may be interested in sharing expenses and the riggers of the drive. Dave can be contacted at SUVCW@hotmail.com or at (517) 321-6013. Please use the subject title SUVCW National Encampment when writing him. He tells me he will be more than happy to help.
- Lastly, and certainly most importantly, Memorial Day will be celebrated on Sunday, May 30th with the “day off” happening on the 31st. All brothers are encouraged to do something to mark this important day. If you can do an activity with your brothers from your camp, so much the better. If you can’t do something with your camp brothers, then I offer a suggestion. Find a civil war veteran, one whose grave has not been previously strewn with flowers, and appears to have been forgotten. Make it your business to see that the grave has been tended, a flag has been placed, and the soldier beneath the stone has been honored. Memorial Day is a date that is central to our obligations as Sons of Union Veterans. Don’t let it pass without doing something to keep green the memory of those soldiers and sailors of 1861 to 1865.
I wish you all a happy summer.
In Fraternity, Charity and Loyalty,
/s/
Donald W. Shaw
Department Commander
Department of Michigan
Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
Attest:
/s/
Paul Davis
Department Secretary
Department of Michigan
Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War