The President

The President’ Desk
October 8, 2009

George Smith
USCTLHA

Membership
Friends of the USCTLHA

In a few days the Board of Directors and other interested parties will convene in Lexington, Kentucky to continue the work of this Association. Our effort will be directed at activities and programs to continue to education and proclaim the legacy of a people long denied their rightful place in the pages of American history. A story of a people who survived inhumane treatment to emerge from the shackles of slavery to save this country from self destruction. A very proud people who established a foundation to allow us to elect a man of color to the United States Presidency 144 years later. In the words of an old spiritual, “the Lord has brought us a mighty long way”

I am encouraged by the prospect that this meeting has the potential to be the most productive meeting ever for the Board. Recent email exchanges between board members attest to my enthusiasm. When we emerge from this meeting the Board will list clear goals and objectives to guide us over the next 12 month period of time which we will share for your consideration as you prepare schedules for 2010. If we allow the 150th anniversary celebration of the beginning of the Civil War to come and go without putting forth a meaningful effort to include the legacy of our ancestors, then shame on us. Our ancestors have given us a very proud history to talk about. Time is of the essence as neither of us will have this opportunity again. We must be diligent and smart in our efforts, especially in the shadows of a man of African Descent sitting in the Oval Office.

As a prelude to this meeting I am encouraging each of you to begin the task of compiling your schedules for the 2010 season. Upon completing your schedules I am asking that you direct this information to me ASAP.

During our meeting in Nashville in January of this year we discussed the possibility of producing a USCT calendar with pictures of units submitting information. We must begin the process of sharing our activities and programs with a larger audience.

In our busy lives, it is easy to overlook the impact of a picture or notice in the paper about our activities to honor our history. In the future I would like to see the website of the USCTLHA become “USCT Central” for the USCT activates and other programs across the United States with links to your individual sites and to local African American oriented museums.

Monday of this week it was brought to my attention that a descent of a member of the 13th USCT Regiment found our site and has inquired as to how to join us in our efforts. Let us learn to use the power of technology to assist us in our noble mission.

In closing, let me make an earnest plea for your support in this group effort. Together we can make a difference. The Board does not have the manpower (or womanpower) to give justice to the work that must be done. You are the most important component to whatever this Association attempts to do. I am asking each and everyone who cares and desires to honor our history to step up and be counted. At this very moment some of the most hallowed grounds on which United States Colored Troops trained, fought and died are under siege at Nashville, Tennessee, and Camp Nelson, Kentucky. In the past these sites received little attention because of their associations with the defeated efforts of the Confederacy. If you don’t believe this, then ask someone about the numbers of Confederate reenactors showing up for activates at these sites in the last 12 months. We remain at war for the minds of a generation which does not know the true story. We need to get up in arms!

Your Obedient Servant,
George Smith, Corporal, 13th USCI