Mansfield, Ohio 44905

(419) 589-3140

Ohio Department Order No. 2

Series 2004-2005

I would like to thank all who attended the 123rd National Encampment at Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The brothers of Iowa were fine hosts.

I am happy to report Brother Don Darby was elected Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief. I know Don will do a fine job of supervising the production of The Banner.

Congratulations to all the brothers of the Ohio Department. We were presented the Augustus P. Davis – Conrad Linder Award. This award is presented to the Department with the greatest number of new members during the year

Congratulations to Brother Stephen A. Michaels of Wisconsin who was elected Commander-in-Chief. The Encampment voted on several changes to our Constitution and Regulations. One major change is the Council of Administration has been expanded from three to five members.

PCinC Elmer Atkinson decided not to run for reelection as National Quartermaster. All supply requisitions with payments are now to be sent to Danny Wheeler, PCinC, 501 Willow Avenue, Ithaca, New York 14850.

The Memorial Stone in honor of the Grand Army of the Republic for the Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery at Rittman, Ohio has been ordered. When it is finished, the stone will be placed on the Memorial Trail at the cemetery.

We will have a dedication/presentation program on Saturday, April 9, 2005 at the cemetery. All brothers and members of the Allied Orders are welcome. This is also the 140^th anniversary of Lee’s surrender. Any brother who would like to help plan the program should contact me.

Wayne Lowery has retired as the Ohio Department Graves Registration Officer. Wayne was first appointed GRO in 1999. Since that time the number of graves registered has grown from 8500 to over 44,000. Please join me in thanking Wayne for his service and dedication to the Ohio Department.

Many Civil War veterans’ graves in Ohio still remain unregistered. All camps are requested to send the name of their Graves Registration Officer as well as any registrations to the Ohio Department GRO, Kent Dorr ([email protected]).

The committee on Civil War Memorials goal is to locate, examine, and record all memorials dedicated to Union Civil War soldiers and sailors. This includes monuments, cannon, fountains, buildings, windows, historical markers, and plaques.

All camps are required by the C&R to have a Memorials Officer. Each Camp is requested to send his name to Ohio Department Memorials officer, Don Grant ([email protected]).

The ASUVCW, DUV, LGAR, and WRC all have goals similar to the SUVCW. These ladies have always supported our activities. Please encourage your wives, mothers, daughters, and sisters to join one or more of our Allied Orders.

2006 will mark the 125^th anniversary of the founding of the SUVCW. All camps are requested to begin compiling a camp history. These histories will be used to create an Ohio Department history, which will, in turn, be used to help create an SUVCW history.

It is not too early to consider donations to the Christmas Committee. The duty of this committee is to solicit voluntary contributions from the Camps and brothers to be used for a donation to the Ohio Veterans Home in Sandusky. Donations may be in the form of money, clothes, or personal care items. Please contact Mark Britton ([email protected]) for details.

Please join with me in wishing PCinC Chuck Corfman a speedy recovery after his recent surgery.