Reception hosted by (not in any particular order):
United States Daughters of 1812 (U.S.D. 1812)
United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC)
Colonial Dames 17th Century (CDXVIIC)
Daughters of the American Colonists (DAC)
Sons & Daughters of the Pilgrims (NSSDP)
Dames of the Court of Honor (DCH)
With grateful appreciation for assistance in
providing refreshments to:
Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR)
With special appreciation to
Little Rock-Centennial Chapter, NSDAR
Gilbert Marshall Chapter, NSDAR
1
For the second year, U.S.D. 1812 was contacted by the Arkansas Inland Maritime
Museum with the request in providing the reception for the Pearl Harbor Day
Ceremony to be held on December 7th. Sheila Beatty, as U.S.D. 1812 coordinator, called
on sister societies to assist. This year, a larger attendance was expected due to its being
the 75th Anniversary of the attack. The attendance was double the previous year and
over 1,000 people attended.
The ceremony was held in view of North Little Rock's
Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum on the Arkansas
River. The museum includes the U.S.S. Hoga, a tugboat
that helped beach the U.S.S. Nevada so it would not
block the harbor and fought fires on the U.S.S. Arizona
for 72 hours after the Pearl Harbor attack.
The museum also includes the U.S.S. Razorback, a
submarine that was present in Tokyo Bay during the
formal surrender of Japan. Despite the name, the
submarine had no previous connection to Arkansas.
Bitterly cold, the ceremony was held outside and
began at 11:30. We servers of U.S.D. 1812, UDC,
CDXVIIC, DAC, NSSDP and DCH started arriving at
9:00 a.m. to set up inside the museum. We found
people already in attendance and invited all to start
having cookies, coffee, hot chocolate, punch and water
– no need to wait.
Mary Ellen Laursen, Vice-President
Baseline-Meridian Chapter
U.S.D.
1812, and Valerie Hartnett, State
President CDXVIIC, start unloading.
U.S.D. 1812 State President, Sharon Stanley
Wyatt.
2
Mary Ellen Laursen
and Sheila Beatty offering goodies to attendees
Valerie and Jane Campbell, Gen. T.J. Churchill,
UDC.
3
Some of our ladies posing: Sheila, Jane, Mary
Ellen, Sharon and Valerie
Below: Beverly Holloway, also of Gen. T.J.
Churchill Chapter, with Jane and Mary Ellen,
preparing the punch.
Sharon and Valerie with NSSDP
State
Governor,
Lisa
Winkleman
Jane thanking a young
seaman for his service
4
Frankie Ochsner, State President DAC,
making hot chocolate; Beverly supervising.
Sharon, Valerie,
Lisa
and
Gena
Norris, AR
Division
VicePresident.
Guests had a wonderful timing swapping “sea stories.” Above left, Mark Taylor, Patriot Guard Rider
and long-time friend.
Allison Hiblong, Director of Operations, Arkansas Inland
Maritime Museum.
5
Left: Beth Webb furnished sailor hats for each of the
children present. Beth served in the Navy as CPO.
PHOTO BY BENJAMIN KRAIN Pearl Harbor survivor Bill
Chase (center) of Pearcy, and World War II veteran O.C. Reed (left) of Sheridan, share war stories
From left, Secretary of State Mark Martin talks
with Pearl Harbor survivors Walter Smith of North
Little Rock and Bill Chase of Garland County.
(John Lyon photo)
"This is a moment of remembrance and
reflection to what happened to individual lives
75 years ago and to what happened to our nation
75 years ago," Gov. Asa Hutchinson said during
the ceremony. Hutchinson said 144 Arkansans
served at Pearl Harbor, and 23 Arkansans were
killed on the U.S.S. Arizona. He said he did not know how many Arkansans enlisted in the military the
day after the attack, but "that number has to be amazing." "It was not on that next day but sometime
later during World War II that my father (John Hutchinson) also signed up in World War II and
served the United States Navy in the Aleutian Islands," Hutchinson said. The governor said that
before the attack, some were pushing for the U.S. to be isolationist and not get involved in the war,
but after the attack "there was never a doubt again about whether the United States should enter the
conflict. There was never a doubt as to whether it was our responsibility."
6
Some of us posing again: Mary
Ellen, Lisa, Kay, Valerie, Judy
Coleman DCH State President,
Sheila
We served approximately 100 dozen cookies. Thank you to Frankie
Ochsner and Judy Coleman for providing the punch. We donated
about an average of 6 hours each – not including baking.
I was having camera trouble and all the pictures of our ladies did not
turn out. I am sorry I missed some of you in this report. I would like
to thank the following for braving the cold and serving (again, not in
any particular order):
Sharon Wyatt, U.S.D. 1812 State President
Valerie Hartnett CDXVIIC State President
Judy Coleman, DCH State President
Frankie Ochsner, DAC State Regent
Lisa Winkleman, NSSDP State Governor
Gena Norris, UDC Division Vice-President (Representing Division President Amber Friday-Brown)
Kay Tatum, UDC Immediate Past Division President
Sheila Beatty, U.S.D. 1812 Honorary State President; DAC Honorary State President
Beverly Webb, Gen. T.J. Churchill Chapter, UDC, President
Beth Webb, Gen. T.J. Churchill Chapter, UDC, Vice-President
Mary Ellen Laursen, Baseline-Meridian, U.S.D. 1812 Vice-President
Jane Campbell, Gen. T.J. Churchill, UDC
Beverly Holloway, Gen. T.J. Churchill, UDC
Mary Ford, Lt. Samuel Cherry Chapter, DAC
And also thank you to all of the ladies who baked, and baked, and baked.
Report Submitted by:
Sheila Beatty – Coordinator
7
8
9