What a wonderful day yesterday was for the SCDAR! This morning, when I checked my e-mail, the
inbox was full of pictures from yesterday’s Ceremonies of Remembrance! I am so excited at what I have so far and
will spend time downloading the pictures and organizing them to share with you
in the next weeks. Just so you will
know, there will be no planned order. I
will post the pictures and corresponding information randomly. If any special information is shared with me
concerning the tribute, I will include that as well. As a result, what is shared will be dependent
on what is received.
As I was leading
my chapter in the Ceremony of Remembrance, I kept thinking throughout the event
how members across the state were recognizing our deceased state regents who
faithfully served our state society for 125 years. It was all I could do not to get choked up as
I led our Ceremony of Remembrance for our assigned State Regent. To all who organized their chapter’s ceremony
and attended the event, I cannot thank you enough!!! As our State Regent, Dianne Culbertson said, “It
is a wonderful tribute to those who have served.” I can’t begin to tell you how pleased she was
to have so many chapters agree to hold the ceremonies!
To give chapters time to send me any additional information
they would like to include, I will begin by posting information for the Ceremony
of Remembrance for Ilda Jane Nixon Patrick.
The sun was shining brightly without a cloud in the sky
making Fairfield County hot this day.
Since our members were traveling out in the county to our location, Mama
and I decided to take refreshments for the occasion. Just outside the gate of the cemetery, we
placed a table with lemonade and cookies along with Ms. Ilda’s picture, one of the
corsages Mama had made for the family of deceased State Regents to wear at the
Friday night banquet of state conference, and the flower that would be placed
at her grave.
As we arrived, a wonderful cooling breeze began and
remained the entire time we were there.
It was as if Ms. Ilda herself had sent the breeze for us from heaven
above.
The members who were able to attend moved to her grave to
be ready to begin the ceremony at 3:00. Below
is information concerning Ilda Patrick.
Ilda
Jane Nixon Patrick
Mrs.
Matthew White
State
Regent 1955-1958
#134378
23 Nov 1890
24 Mar 1981
Aged 90
White Oak ARP Cemetery
White Oak, SC
Ms.
Ilda was a 64 year member in the Thomas Woodward Chapter where she served her
chapter in almost every capacity. She
served the SCDAR as State Regent from 1955-1958 and concurrently served as
Chairman of the Tamassee DAR School Board of Trustees. She was elected to the position of NSDAR Vice
President General from 1958-1961.
Her church, the White Oak ARP, and all
phases of the women’s work of the church knew her loyalty and appreciated her
long active service.
As a citizen, she gave generously of
her time in many civic organizations in the county serving as an officer in
most of them. Winthrop College honored
her as a Master Farm Homemaker.
Ms. Ilda was a native of St. Claire
County Illinois. She graduated from
Erskine College and taught school for two years before marrying Matthew White
Patrick. She and her husband were
married for over 60 years and spent their entire married life here in White
Oak.
Her life could be described as one of
dedication to God and Country, devotion to family and friends, loyalty to
principles of historical appreciation of the past; patriotic service in the
present and wholesome education for the future; a life of service to the
betterment of community, state, and nation, and a life of inspiration to strive
onward and upward till the goal is reached.
The flower was placed.
Pictures were taken.
And, then…DAR members do what they always do when they
are in a cemetery, the members started looking at the gravestones to see if
there were any that might be family connections to their own lines! Of course, genealogical discussions were then
the topic as well as the history of White Oak, the Patrick family who are the
overwhelming majority buried in the cemetery, and the historical church.
We were sad to discover, but not surprised, that the DAR
marker placed during the Crider administration is missing. All of us feel that this was a result of
grave robbers going around stealing copper to sell for quick money which has been a problem in cemeteries nationwide.
It was a delightful afternoon, and it was a pleasure to
be a part of the 125th anniversary celebration! One of our HODARs asked when the next big
anniversary was. I told him that we
would turn 150 in 25 years. He asked me
if I would be in charge of that one. My
response was, “Noooo, I would be in my 70s.”
One of my members looked at me and said that she would be pushing up
daisies by then! She is one of our newer
members and was truly glad that she was able to participate in this special
anniversary of the SCDAR.
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