Prattville Dragoons Camp Meeting October 2013 - Part 1

Two dozen members and friends of the Prattville Dragoons, Sons of Confederate Veterans camp 1524 attended the monthly camp meeting on October 10th at the Shoney's on Cobbs Ford Rd.  Chaplain Tom Snowden opened the meeting with an Invocation and pledges to the U.S., State of Alabama and Confederate Battle Flag followed.  Commander Stuart Forrest Waldo recited the SCV Charge and then provided the camp announcements and items of interest.  Special guests all of whom expressed interest in joining the SCV Prattville Dragoons camp included Randall Ray Jr, Bill Spears and Will Dismukes who previously provided a presentation on artifacts he had found at his family farm.  Jerry McMichael who has been a long time member attended for the first time in some time saying his schedule allowed him time now to attend his camp's meetings for which he was glad. Upcoming events (found here on a prior blog) included the Reenactments at Newton and Tallassee.  Compatriot Benny Harris handed out flyers announcing the rescheduled rededication of the Old Rasberry Family Cemetery on Sunday Nov 3rd in Chilton County's Mulberry/Isabella community and invited anyone who attended the ceremony in Confederate period attire to participate in the setting of Confederate Battle Flags on the graves of those Confederate veterans buried there.  A Civil War Ball in Guntersville on Niv 30th followed by the Christmas parade in Prattville on December 7th culminated by our own Dragoons Christmas Social at Buena Vista on December 13th comprised all of the upcoming holiday events.Next year in February 7-8th in Chattanooga TN, the Stephen Dill Lee Institute will convene for their annual educational lectures.  Special recognition was extended to Dragoon Jeffrey Potts who manned the Dragoons SCV recruitment table at the gun show at the Alcazar Shriners Temple in Montgomery the weekend of September 21st.  He informed everyone that another gun show is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday November 2nd and 3rd and volunteers are needed to help man the table on Saturday.  The special recognition proclamation for the Autaugaville Star Spangled equestrian team was shown although the members of their team were unable to make the camp meeting and their coach expressed regrets.  The proclamation commended the team for proudly flying the Confederate Battle Flag to proclaim their Southern heritage.  Adjutant Wayne Sutherland provided an update on the annual membership renewals reporting that it appeared three Dragoons would not be rejoining due to health and relocation.  But the guests in attendance as well as previously submitted applications for membership gave us reason to celebrate that our membership numbers should actually increase despite this attrition.  Next came the Dragoons own Allen Herrod who presented an impressive rousing reenactment of Patrick Henry's famous speech to the House of Burgesses where he proclaimed, "Give me liberty or give me death" much as our Confederate ancestors also proclaimed in their struggle for independence. 

Dragoons Commander Waldo at the October Camp Meeting