In appreciation of the family's generosity, a special acquisition ceremony was planned. As the state officer of charge of the ceremony, I wanted to show the state's appreciation to the family by planning a special ceremony where I would share something about her administration. I researched the administration of Grace Marshall and was amazed at what I discovered. When I shared what I had learned at the ceremony, I discovered that not only had I learned something but so had every person in attendance at the ceremony including the family as Grace had died at an early age. To watch everyone's faces as I shared this information, I realized that we did not know our own history and the phenomenal work of our state society and its regents. My passion became to share this information with our membership.
My passion began with the project known as "Reflections of Our Treasured Past: Honoring the Service of Our Past Regents" consisting of displays, shadow boxes, and scrapbooks featuring the service or our past state regents. I soon realized, however, that only those who come to state conference or have me as a speaker would see the displays and that there is more wonderful information to share than just about our past state regents. Therefore, the project is continuing to grow by reaching out to more members through this blog and including more information than just information about past state regents. The purpose of "Reflections of Our Treasured Past" is to educate and inspire, to inform and encourage.
To educate: This blog will be used to educate our members about its treasured past while helping to fulfill the words of Thomas Jefferson "what is past is prologue." How can we understand where we are as a society if we do not know from where we have come? How can we share the wonderful work that we do at Tamassee if we do not understand it original purpose and its mission today? How can we make informed decisions if we do not know what transpired in the past that led to the present course? While the aforementioned is paramount, sometimes learning about our past is simply fun and makes you appreciate what you have and what transpired in the past even more. This blog will also be used to share interesting tidbits of information, just for fun.
To inspire: This blog will be used to inspire our members to preserve their own chapters' histories as well as record chapter property and share those histories and the property with the state by placing that information in a digital repository. Did you know that the early records of our state society are missing, and there are many questions left unanswered? Your chapter's records may just hold the answers to those questions, but we will never know if you do not know your chapter's history and prevent your history from being lost. Did you know that some chapter property is thought to be personal property and not being returned to the chapter when newly elected officers are installed? Valuable information is being lost that should not be.
To inform: This blog will be used to inform our members of ways to preserve chapter histories, to catalogue chapter property, and to place this information in a digital repository allowing for retrieval in the event that the information is lost by the chapter due to something such as a natural disaster. In addition, new techniques, software, tips, etc. that can aid our members' endeavors will be shared.
To encourage: This blog will be used to encourage our members as they work on this daunting but important task of preserving chapter histories and cataloging chapter property. In the beginning, this task will seem overwhelming, but remember what has turned into my mantra concerning the preservation portion of this project, "If not you, then who?"
At the Tamassee Dedication of Star Lights on May 24, 2010, then State Regent Marilyn Altman stated, "Nothing is really ended until it is forgotten. Whatever is kept in memory still endures, and is real." Too much of history is forgotten for lack of preservation, and when we want to know more, we have no way of getting that information. Too often we have good intentions of recording information for posterity but never take the time to do so only to have that information lost forever. Let us be the generation of members that does not forget and keeps things in our memory by preserving our history in order for future generations to reflect on our collective treasured past.
