"The Shortest Distance Between Two Points. Volume 1, Issue 2 Lincoln, California Sep=Oct 2010

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1 "The Shortest Distance Between Two Points Volume 1, Issue 2 Lincoln, California Sep=Oct 2010 Sons of Union Veterans Of the Civil War Brad Schall Commander-in-Chief I would like to thank the Department of Kansas for putting on a great National Encampment. We now can look forward to a year of honoring the Boys in Blue and accomplishing our Mission. For those that haven t attended a National Encampment, come join us in Virginia next year. Our Order s business is conducted at the National Encampments and we can use your input and advice. Attending your Department Encampments is also vital to developing a strong organization and plenty of old fashion Fraternity, Charity and Loyalty. No, I m not going to forget to say that your most important meeting is your Camp meeting. That s where the big things happen. We are an organization that is managed by committees. We need qualified and motivated people. If you would like to serve on a National Committee or know a Brother that would like to serve, please let me know. We want new faces and new ideas. Several things were decided at the National Encampment: First the Encampment voted to raise the National per capita by $5.00 a year. The first increase in eight years. It was a necessary action. Our leadership skills are often tested when we present unpleasant actions to our members. Your camps need to get their new dues structure on their websites as soon as possible. This may be a problem for some and I hope each of you will be cognizant that some may have a problem with this. Do not lose a member for the increase. My camp pays the dues for one year of its members if they lose their job or have a hardship. Talk to me if you have a major problem. Combining the Internet and regular membership applications are in the hands of the Program and Policy committee.

2 Constitution and Regulation Committee was busy and the new C&R s should be on the National Website by October first. Our first Council of Administrative meeting will be in Gettysburg on November 21 st. Chief of Staff Russ will be setting dates for you to send him reports. You all are invited to attend the CofA meeting. Come speak your piece. Simply put: Learn who we are Learn what we do Participate in what we do Honor the Boys in Blue Brad Schall Commander-in-Chief Don Palmer Jr. Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief First, I would like to thank the Brothers of our Order for electing me to the position of Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief. It is truly an honor for me, and I will do my level best to meet expectations.

3 As Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief, I am also Chairman of the Program & Policy Committee and already have been tasked to tackle several items resulting from actions at the National Encampment and Council of Administration meetings. These include: Revisions to Forms 27a, 35, 49, 55 and CWM-62 Establish a single membership application form vs. the two forms we currently have (internet and Camp forms) Updates to Awards & Recognition and BANNER Policies Amend job description for National Patriotic Instructor located on website to follow suit with Constitution & Regulation Committee actions. In addition to fulfilling my duties as mandated by the Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief job description, I have several other goals I would like to accomplish during my term in office for the purpose of promoting our Order: Establish a vision while our Order has a well-defined mission, we do not have a collective vision for what we want this organization to look like in the future. I would like to work with the Commander-in-Chief and the Council of Administration to draft this vision for presentation to the membership at the 2011 National Encampment. Engage the membership as an organization, we need a forum to periodically obtain feedback from the membership to get a pulse on the organization and solicit new ideas to keep our Order moving. Pending approval from the Commander-in-Chief and the Council of Administration I plan on developing and conducting a survey to extract this information and report the results to the National leadership and the membership along with recommendations. Promote the Order - The organization experienced a major growth period during the late 1980 s through the mid-1990 s, largely due to a renewed interest in the Civil War, fueled by documentaries such as Ken Burn s Civil War and epic films like Glory and Gettysburg. Since the late 1990 s, however, National membership numbers have experienced limited growth. With the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War coming up, we have another opportunity to promote organizational growth, not only in membership, but also in scope. I plan on working with the Civil War Sesquicentennial Committee and other key committees in developing new promotional material to increase the visibility of the organization. In conclusion, I extend an invitation to all Brothers to contact me with questions, ideas, issues and/or concerns. I believe a key cornerstone of any growth plan is communication, and my inbox is always open!

4 In Fraternity, Charity & Loyalty, Don Palmer, PDC Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief SUVCW Don Martin National Patriotic Instructor Department Commanders, This article deals with the Duties of the Department and Camp Patriotic Instructors. Please ensure that the DPI and CPI in your Department are doing their jobs. The founders of our organization felt that the office of Patriotic Instructor was important enough to share a seating location with the Junior and Senior Vice Commanders. Thus we should recognize and emphasis the importance of performing these duties. JOB DESCRIPTION DEPARTMENT/CAMP PATRIOTIC INSTRUCTOR Purpose The purpose of the office of Patriotic Instructor is to provide leadership in promoting patriotism within the membership of our Order & to inform, educate & promote patriotism among the populace in general. DPI and CPI should familiarize themselves with the Instructor Handbook and Forms at the National website for Patriotic Instructors.

5 Activities- the activities of the Patriotic Instructor should include the following responsibilities. 1. Pass on, prepare and issue letters of instruction for the observance of national patriotic holidays. 2. Assist Chaplain in preparing & issuing letters of instructions for Memorial Day observance 3. Provide patriotic topics that should be stressed at Department & Camp meetings. 4. Pass on, prepare and submit information on patriotic topics for Department/Camp s activities. 5. Lead those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. 6. Apprise the Department/Camp Commander on the activities of the Patriotic Instructor. 7. Perform all other duties delegated to the office by the Order's Constitution and Regulations ("C&R"), Ritual and Ceremonials, Department Encampment and/or Department/Camp Commander. 8. Prepare and submit an annual written report to the Camp/Department Commander and the Department/National Patriotic Instructor of the Department/Camp activities 2 months prior to the annual Department/National Encampment. Additionally DPI duties include the following: 1. Ensure Camp PI is familiar with their duties, Handbook and forms. 2. Contact each CPI monthly. If a Camp does not have a PI, contact the Camp Commander it is their responsibility. 3. Ensure CPI provides monthly Patriotic Instruction and that Department Meetings provide Patriotic Instruction. (You can use the ones on the site, provide your own and/or encourage CPI to provide their own.) 4. Completion of the Annual DPI Report as per our ritual, You are further required to file a report upon blanks prepared for the purpose... Unfortunately this is a practice that all to often has been neglected in the past. Each of your Camps needs to fill out the Camp Report and file with you. You will be required to file the Department Report with me. The collected and compiled reports will be presented to the Commander in Chief and at the National Encampment. These reports are very important as part of our position as Patriotic Instructor. The purpose is to recognize what we are doing well and identify areas that need improvement. I realize that the situation of each Camp and Department is different and that some are in better position to do certain things than others. Nonetheless, the reports need filed! a. Camp reports are based on a January to December 2010 calendar. The Camps must submit this not later than 1 Feb 2011 to the Department Patriotic Instructor. (It is the Camp Commanders responsibility to see that the report is filed if the camp has no PI.) b. Department reports must be filed with me no later than 1 June 2011.

6 c. Reports may be filed electronically or by mail if necessary. Copies of the Camp & Department Patriotic Instructor Report and Patriotic Instruction Examples are on the National Patriotic Instructor page of the National web site. Memorial University The Memorial University is an online course developed by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War as an Officer Training Course for its members. This course was a vision of Commander-in-Chief David V. Medert and was achieved through the efforts of a Special National Committee on Education and Leadership established by the 127th SUVCW National Encampment. The course came on line in September of 2009 and currently has 13 graduates. The class is totally free and was developed and is operated by our members, for our members. It is a great way to learn about our Order. Even if you already know all about the order, I challenge you to sign up and see how you do. Please pass this information on to other Camps and Brothers. To sign up please visit the Memorial University page on the contact the National Website: Yours in Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty, Don Martin, PCC National Patriotic Instructor

7 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1 PAGE From the Chief of Staff. Communication. One of the responsibilities of the Chief of Staff is to help get the information out to you in a timely manner. To help me in that task, I ask that each of you keep me informed of any change of mailing address or address. Also, as Department elections begin again after the first of the year, please let me know who is your successor. Whenever National General Orders are published, I will get them to you as quickly as possible. Please ensure you then pass them on to your Department staffs, committee members, and camps. Department Encampments. It is CinC Schall s desire to personally attend as many Department Encampments as possible. He also desires that a National Officer represent him at any he cannot attend. In order for that to happen, we need you to make sure we have your encampment dates and locations as quickly as they become available. His calendar is quickly filling, and everyone has scheduling issues with which to deal. I am personally hoping to attend several of your encampments, also. Department Commander Reports, National Officer Reports, and Committee Reports. One of the tasks of the Chief of Staff is to ask for, receive, compile, and present this reports to the Council of Administration for their various meetings. Normally, about 60 days prior to the meeting, I will send out an requesting the reports, with a due date to me of about three weeks prior to the meeting. I will send out a second notice 30 days prior as a reminder. It is very important that the reports be submitted by the due date, as I will have to compile them and have them printed. In some cases, I will be leaving for the meeting over a week before it is held. Tentative dates are as follows: Gettysburg Council of Administration Meeting (November 20, 2011): First Notice: September 15, 2010 Second Notice: October 20, 2010

8 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1 PAGE Due Date: November 1, 2010 Springfield, Illinois, Council of Administration Meeting (April 16, 2011): First Notice: February 15, 2011 Second Notice: March 15, 2011 Due Date: April 1, 2011 Renton, Virginia, Council of Administration Meeting (August 11, 2011): First Notice: June 15, 2011 Second Notice: July 15, 2011 Due Date: August 1, 2011 Questions, Issues, and Concerns. If you have any of these, let me know. I will do whatever I can to get you an answer or in touch with the person who can. My job description does not include roadblock to the CinC. Please use me as a conduit for information; however, you can always contact CinC Schall direct. In Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty, Alan L. Russ, PDC National Chief of Staff, SUVCW P.O. Box 673 Saint Francis, Kansas (785) suvcwks@eaglecom.net Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War- National Organization on Facebook. To see more details and confirm this invitation, follow the link below: War-N ational- Organization%2F &mid=304afb7G52d7ceb4G220be07G4c&n_m=d schall%40starstream.net Thanks, Editor

9 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1 PAGE The William B. Keith Camp # 12, Las Vegas, Nevada voted to adopt a local elementary school here in Las Vegas three years ago, which was approved overwhelmingly by the members. To provide some information how we selected this particular school, Brother Peter- son was working as a security guard and was assigned to the school to be a fire watch at the new portable trailers they put in for classrooms until the fire alarms could be hooked up. There were three units to be used as classrooms, but prior to school opening, two of the units were vandalized, therefore only one could be used at that time until the other two could be redone. During school time, while students were at school, and using the one unit, I Brother Peterson was invited at times to sit in the class. At times the teacher would ask me my opinions on certain matters regarding history in this country, as the teacher found out I was a member of the SUVCW. I bonded with the teacher and students and was elated to assist in anyway possible and still perform my duties as a security guard. I was at the school for about 6 months and was invited to attend their DARE graduation where I was presented with pictures, letters and posters from the students. I was then assigned to a couple of other school but my heart was at the Helen Marie Smith Elementary School. I received a call from the then principal asking if I would like to be the guest speaker at the 5th grade moving on ceremony. I was elated and honored to have been asked. I was also informed that I could come back to the school at anytime I wanted to volunteer, of which I did not hesitate, I agreed. Shortly thereafter I retired as a security officer and was attending the school almost on a full-time basis. Editor s Note: The Helen Marie Smith School was 1 of 2 Schools in all of Nevada, and 1 of only 340 nationwide to receive this award. Be sure to check the National website For additional events and updates.