The Annual CMM Chapter Awards Meeting was held this past Saturday at Historic Little Fork Church.  Little Fork Church was under construction in 1775 when many of its members joined the Culpeper Minute Battalion and marched off to fight in our Revolution.

     Attendees included 15 compatriots, 9 spouses, 2 prospective members, and 3 guests.  The Fellowship Hall of Little Fork Church was provided for our use without charge.  A fantastic meal was catered by Maegan Partlow.  Meals by Maegan are clearly the favorite with the CMM membership.
     We began the meeting by inducting two new members, Craig Truskey and Sean Megeath.

     The next event was the awarding of War Service Medals to Craig Truskey and Don Hollar.  Compatriot Truskey received the War Service Medal with SW ASIA bar and compatriot Hollar received the War Service Medal with KOREA bar.

     Next, those who had purchased commissions in the 1st Virginia Regiment of the Virginia Society were awarded certificates and pins recognizing their rank in that organization.  Len Cowherd was recognized as a Sergeant and Bill Mutziger was commissioned as a Colonel.

     Certificates of Patriotism were presented to those who were recognized as new members of the various Veterans Corps.

     Service Pins were given to Larry Alexander and Don Jennings for 15 years of service and to Don Hollar for 5 years of service.

     Certificates of Appreciation were presented to Secretary Tom Hamill, Treasurer Bill Mutziger, and Historian Ben Works.

     For many years of distinguished service as CMM officer, Chaplain Len Cowherd and Color Guard Commander Lon Lacey were presented Distinguished Service Certificates.

     The Culpeper Minutemen Chapter is likely the only SAR chapter that has its own medal awarded for merit, the Culpeper Minutemen Gold Medal.  This medal originated with past Chapter President Jim Bayne over 10 years ago.  We presented the CMM Gold Medal to compatriot Paul Chase of the Col William Grayson Chapter.  Compatriot Chase has, over the past several years, been a frequent contributor to CMM activities, especially in augmenting our color guard.  Our First Friday in Warrenton events over the past three years would not take place without the significant support that he provides for those events.  We are very proud to recognize Paul Chase for his service to our chapter.

     After the medal presentations we feasted on a buffet prepared by Maegan Partlow.

     After lunch we conducted our business meeting, the most important part of which was to vote on those nominated to be our officers for 2017.  Those nominated were elected by acclamation, including:

2017 Officers
President - Jerry Hubbard
1st Vice President - Vacant
2nd Vice President - Jim Lillard
Secretary - Tom Hamill
Treasurer - Bill Mutziger
Chaplain - Len Cowherd
Historian - Vacant
Registrar - Bill Schwetke

     Newly inducted compatriot Sean Megeath led us in Recessional as we concluded the meeting.

     The Culpeper Minutemen Chapter presented the Virginia Community Bank, Culpeper Branch, with a flag certificate today.  When the bank began a recent renovation compatriot Larry Alexander and his wife Beverly helped the local manager, Tripp Butler, with making the bank's flag display appropriate for 24 hour display of Old Glory.  The bank is very proud of the result, and the Culpeper Minutemen are proud of how they honor our flag.
     The Bank President, A. Preston Moore, Jr., a resident of Louisa, VA, is being actively recruited by past Virginia SAR President Phil Williams for the Thomas Jefferson Chapter, and the Culpeper Branch Vice President William T. "Tripp" Butler III,  is being actively recruited by Larry Alexander for the CMM.  Both have solid lineages to patriots and should soon be our compatriots.
     Participating in the presentation, in uniform, were Larry Alexander, Don Jennings, and Bill Schwetke.  Beverly Alexander also participated, taking pictures.

     CMM Color Guard Commander Lon Lacey delivered a presentation on the flags of the American Revolution to the Gordonsville meeting of the Colonial Dames of the XVII Century.  A group of about 23 ladies and some husbands were treated to Lon's expert discussion, complete with examples of the flags that he discussed.

     At 11:00 am this morning Veterans' Day was celebrated at Culpeper National Cemetery.  Participants included two Virginia SAR chapters, the CMM and Col William Grayson; the DAR, the VFW, the American Legion, the Culpeper County High School Blue Devil Band, and the Culpeper County Sheriff's Department.  Marching in the SAR Color Guard were Larry Alexander, Paul Chase, Lon Lacey, Lance Lyngar, and Bill Schwetke.  The CMM wreath was presented by Charles Jameson.  Also attending was Michael Dennis, whose application was signed a week ago.
     The keynote speaker was Delegate Nick Freitas of Virginias 30th District.  Delegate Freitas served two combat tours as a member of the US Army Special Forces.

     The CMM and the Fauquier Court House Chapter of the DAR co-hosted a Genalogy Workshop.  Participating were 27 non-SAR/DAR attendees, 3 guest speakers, 15 DAR volunteers, 4 non-SAR/DAR volunteers, and 5 CMM Volunteers: Larry Alexander, Len Cowherd, Tom Hamill, Lon Lacey & Bill Schwetke.  There were 11 door prizes given out from Ancestry.com, Family Tree DNA, Family Tree Maker Software, and several smaller sponsors.  These prizes were worth several hundred dollars.  Those who attended heard 9 different presentations, all but one offered four times each to allow small groups to sit in on each one.  The one presentation offered only once was the keynote talk, over lunch, by author Laura Lyster-Mensh, on the "Reluctant Family Historian".  The Workshop was free to everyone, and all participants received a free continental breakfast and a hot lunch.

Compatriots and Friends,
 
     This Saturday is our joint DAR/SAR Genealogy Workshop, and we could still use some volunteers to help with setup, registration, and tear down.  If you have some time, give us a hand.  You are also welcome to attend; there are several informative presentations on genealogy.  The following week we will participate in Veterans’ Day activities at Culpeper National Cemetery, and a DAR National Defense Luncheon at Graves Mountain Lodge.  The 19th is our Chapter Awards Meeting, at Little Fork Church and catered by Maegan, our favorite chef.  We will take a break for Thanksgiving, then will be the Celebration of the victory at Great Bridge.  Great Bridge is an event that you should strive to make, our chapter is the co-host for the ceremony.  Then don’t forget the DAR/SAR Christmas Party on the evening of December 12th (Monday).  That’s a lot to look forward to enjoying.
     From I reliable source I have heard that the next Virginia SAR President will have increased membership as one of his initiatives.  I think we should strongly support that.  Perhaps bringing a friend to the Genealogy Workshop would be a good place to start.  Two years ago I asked everyone to bring a new prospective member to the January Meeting.  Perhaps that should be done again in the new year.  If you know anyone who you would like to see join us, don’t wait for January, but let’s get them started.  Currently we have 1 ready for induction, 3 applications at national, one signed and ready to go, but probably will wait on 5 other family members, one to be signed this Saturday, 8 others in various stages of completion. It is very healthy to keep the chapter growing.
     Also at our November meeting we will vote on a slate of officers for 2017.  If you are interested in serving contact either me, or Nominations Committee Chairman Lance Lyngar.  Those of you who will be officers next year should consider attending the Virginia SAR Annual Meeting, 10-11 Feb, in Richmond.  That is a good opportunity to meet compatriots from across the state, share ideas, and learn how the state society operates.  It is beneficial for anyone to attend, but especially chapter officers.
     I hope you are enjoying the cooler weather and colorful leaves, and I hope to see you at our activities.

Your Servant,
Bill Schwetke, President