President Sam Massey's Address to the 128th Convention
Compatriots,
I have been a member of this Society since 2007. Like most of you I was younger then. Most of you know me from our past shared service through a meal, a happy hour, a committee, an event, a project, Color Guard, church, or maybe DRT, or DAR. Let me say I am a Texan by choice; my parents and siblings are all back in Tennessee. By the way, I am a newly minted Honorary member of the SRT.
I came here for work and am still working. I thought I might be retired by now. Along the way, I know I have told many of you how I fell in love with our core beliefs. If so please pardon me for the sake of some who haven't met me yet, or might have forgotten my story. I was in Washington DC at the national DAR congress at a National Defense night listening to a speaker. Through tears I turned to Catherine and said I wish there was an organization like this for men. To this day, like many of you, I am still in love with the Daughters of the American Revolution. Let me just say, if you have the opportunity to serve with your wife, by all means do it. I can say that knowing, loving, and working with her is my greatest joy with the only exception of knowing and enjoying Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior.
After carrying bags and driving through the District of Columbia Catherine agreed to help me serve as host chairman of a Texas SAR state meeting. Well, with the kind coaching of Larry Stevens and Don Pugh I served as Loren and his wife Susan have done for us this weekend. Not long after Tom Lawrence asked me to serve as Texas SAR Communications Secretary. I had watched Bill Marrs serve the Society in the Secretary role for so many years and I only hoped I would have as long an opportunity to serve. I thank you for your confidence in me these many years.
I have served under several Texas SAR Presidents/Administrations. My work career has kept me busy with much travel, but I have seen through David Temple and many other Texas SAR presidents you need not wait for retirement. I have seen many personalities, many skill sets, and passions. I realize, just as we have seen this weekend from the Texas Society and the Freedom Chapter, it takes more than just one person. It takes a team. If you ask me to do something, I pledge to do my best. I did not serve in uniform; I am not a genealogist; I am not a historian. As you can tell, with me a few sentences into this talk, I am not a great orator. I am not a salesman; I am a pretty simple guy - an IT on my good days. I believe in what we are doing. I believe you are here like me to honor your patriots
I am so thankful to see Jim not hanging up his saddle but working now at a national level with Tom Jackson to help our society better communicate. Tomorrow morning I will join Drake at the 1812 Society breakfast. I ask you to continue to serve; I ask you to take aside a young compatriot in your chapter, or an old compatriot, or a new compatriot, or at the least take a look at yourself and say to that person - what are you passionate about? What do you want to do? What gives you energy? What puts pep in your step? What inspires you about SAR? What renews your spirit?
I am so excited to see Tom Green and Bob Cohen, Drake Peddie, and Jim Kuykendall recognized by DAR. And we are all inspired by the enthusiasm with which Bob and Jane continue to lead us both locally and nationally. Also tomorrow morning, as is tradition, we have our Board of Managers meeting. Do you realize we have in our BOM PGs White, Butler, Dooley, Lawrence, & Pickett?
Someone recently asked if Sam would carry on like those before him. Please pray that I do. We will continue with the mentor program. We will continue with the 250 programs, the cenotaph, the bench program, the liberty tree, the Galvez Trail, and the Galvez Statute. As you heard today we are eliminating the PayPal fee for dues, and we will continue to simplify the processes of the society for the sake of the society. As is said in Hebrews, with such a cloud of witnesses going before us both here and in the past, how can we not be asking ourselves what can I do next? What has the maker made me for? Who am I to encourage? What are citizens of this land, by oath or birth, looking to me to do? And to act? Our days are numbered, as we were reminded in our memorial service today.
Again I thank you for the confidence and faith you have put in me. In the words of the Paul Carrington Chaplain, Rev Douglas Harper, May God Bless the Great State of Texas and May God Bless these United States of America!!
Thank you!