Download - December Newsletter
tributor to this newsletter– re-
minds us that the Tuesday, De-
cember 13th, meeting is packed
with exciting presentations- in-
cluding guest speaker Gail Sny-
der, 2011 Thomas Jefferson
Award Winner (see page 2—
December Meeting Goes to the
Dogs) and Lana Patterson, who
will share ―Lesser Known
Lady—Elizabeth Monroe.
Barbara Beratta will present. a
Woman’s Issue story and com-
memorate a member’s ancestor
who fought in the War of 1812.
Hope to see you on Tuesday,
Dec 13th!
Cathy
Dear Daughters,
Prospective Mem-
bers, and Friends,
The year started out fabulously!
The new state-of-the-art meet-
ing room at Creekside was a hit
with everyone.
In October, the meeting room
was literally overflowing with
members and guests. We were
especially excited to see so
many prospective members –
including several from the Pied-
mont Chapter.
Our speaker, 90 year-old Betty
Reid Soskin—the country’s old-
est National Park Ranger- was
an inspiration to us all. Who
among us can say they started
a new career at the age of 75?
And what an entertaining and
articulate speaker for our first
meeting of the year! A special
thank you to our 1st Vice Re-
gent Geri Willinger for arrang-
ing such outstanding speakers
this year.
The November Tea Fund
Raiser/Meeting was wonderful
thanks to the generosity of
local businesses and devoted
daughters. See page 4 for
photos and details.
Corresponding Secretary Bar-
bara Beratta—a major con-
From the desk of your Regent Cathy Olsen
December 2011 Volume 9 Issue 2
Mt. Diablo Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution
Special points of
interest:
Project Patriot
adopts Bay Area
Soldier SFC Kathy
Vargas
Thomas Jefferson
Award Winner Gail
Snyder speaks at
December meeting
Three great new
members join Chap-
ter
Mt. Diablo Beacon—
WWII ceremony
Wed, Dec 7
Inside this issue:
50 Years and Count-
ing—Mary Nygreen
2
December Meeting
goes to the Dogs
2
Lesser Known Ladies—
Louisa Adams
3
Revolutionary Tea Party
-A Smashing Success
4
Meet new members
Elaine, Stephanie, Holly
5
Sunshine Report 5
Troops Search for Hair-
spray in Afghanistan
6
Photo by Robert Picker mtdiablophotos.com
Last but not least, if you cannot
attend but would like to contrib-
ute decorated sugarless cookies
and small muffins—no nuts or
other choking threats—food
donations are appreciated.
To sign up or for more informa-
tion, please contact Christy
C a m p b e l l a t c l c a m p -
[email protected]. Please let
Christy know if you can partici-
pate or contribute to in any or all
of the Livermore Veteran's Holi-
day festivities.
On the 10th, orientation at the
Community Living Center
(CLC) for decorating starts at
9:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. for
serving and veterans
assistance volunteers. The
event will conclude at 1:30
p.m.
Only available for an hour and
love to make crafts? Come at
9:00 and, in addition to
decorating, volunteers will be
making individual ―take away‖
decorations for the veterans.
Contributor: Joy Montgomery
Time—which is free yet pre-
cious—is a gift we can all give.
This month, the Veterans Com-
mittee has several ―no or low
cost‖ opportunities to let our
veterans know they are loved
and appreciated this holiday
season.
Volunteers are needed to help
serve, bring food and work on
crafts for the December 10 Liv-
ermore Veterans Holiday Party.
Holiday Giving Without Spending
Page 2
Dear DAR Members, Thank you for honoring my 50 year membership in such a memorable way. What a pleasant surprise to receive my 50 year pin. Also, the beautiful dozen roses are still fresh looking. The colorful cake was delicious. Thanks so much. Sincerely,
Mary S. Nygreen
Mary Noyes (Sizer) Nygreen
was born in Bloomington,
Illinois although she actually
lived in Mansfield.
Mary obtained an under-
graduate degree in Institution
Management and Home Eco-
nomics from Iowa State,
Ames, Iowa and a master’s
degree from the University of
Washington, Seattle.
During her professional ca-
reer, Mary managed restau-
rants, served as an Assistant
Director at the U of W
Women’s Resident Hall and
50 Years and Counting
–Mary Nygreen
December Meeting Goes to the Dogs
many years as a volunteer sup-
porting our Military Working
Dogs (MWD).
Patriotic dogs are not new to
the service of our country.
Man’s best friend has served in
our military as sentries, scouts,
explosive detectors, and search
and rescue workers in every
U.S. war for the past 90 years.
It is estimated that each MWD
has saved the lives of 150 sol-
diers during their career. During
the Vietnam War, these dogs
saved more than 10,000 sol-
diers.
Gail Snyder has made it her life
work to ship care packages to
MWD in military outposts over-
seas from the post office in
Pinole. In recognition of her
selfless and tireless efforts, Gail
was awarded the 2011 Thomas
Jefferson Award.
Contributor: Jennifer Langan
Is man’s best friend also a
patriot? Gail Snyder thinks
he is. Gail recognizes that
the soldier’s best friend is
man’s best friend, the dog.
Throughout the years, DAR
daughters have spent count-
less hours and donated mil-
lions of dollars to support the
men and women who serve
our country. However, it
takes a true dog lover to un-
derstand that supporting and
protecting our troops also
includes keeping our coun-
try’s special military working
dogs in top shape.
Please join us on Tuesday,
December 13, to hear our not
-to-be-missed special guest
speaker and outstanding pa-
triot Gail Snyder, share heart
warming stories about her
Mt. Diablo Chapter
“In recognition of her
selfless and tireless
efforts, Gail was
awarded the 2011
Thomas Jefferson
Award”
managed food service in the
FBI Headquarters, WA DC.
Mary and Paul Nygreen, her
husband of 61 years, raised
two children and lived in sev-
eral exotic foreign countries
as they followed Paul’s career
in the oil industry. Mary and
Paul have one grandchild.
Mary served twice as Regent
for the Chapter during her 50
years in DAR. Mary we are
proud to have you as a mem-
ber of our Chapter and thank
you for your dedication and
service over those years.
Gail Snyder
Lakeshia Dennis and EDD
“Roony”
Mary Nygreen
Page 3
What First Lady suffered such
misery during her husband’s
unpopular presidency that
she spent many long, iso-
lated evenings reading,
sketching, cultivating silk-
worms and gorging on choco-
lates?
Louisa Catherine Johnson
Adams, wife of our sixth
president, John Quincy Ad-
ams.
Born in London, on February
12, 1775, Louisa was the only
foreign-born First Lady. She
was the daughter of Joshua
Johnson, an American mer-
chant, and Catherine Nuth-
Johnson, an Englishwoman.
Louisa grew up in London
and Nante, France, where her
family took refuge during the
American Revolution.
She met her future husband
in London where her father
had been appointed Ameri-
can consul. Adams at first
showed interest in her older
sister, but soon settle down
Louisa. John Quincy Adams,
aged 30, married Louisa aged
22, in 1797, in London. Ad-
ams’ father, John Adams,
then President of the United
States, overcame his initial
objections to his son marrying
a foreigner and welcomed his
daughter-in-law into the fam-
ily.
Together, John Quincy Ad-
ams and Louise had
Four children. Louisa was
sickly, plagued by migraine
headaches and frequent faint-
ing spells. She had seven
miscarriages over the course
of their marriage.
When John Quincy Adams
was appointed James Mon-
roe’s U.S. Secretary of State
the family moved to Washing-
ton D.C., in 1817 where
Louisa’s drawing room be-
came a center for the diplo-
matic corps and other nota-
bles. Music enhanced her
Tuesday evenings at home,
and theater parties contrib-
uted to her reputation as an
outstanding hostess.
The pleasures of moving into
the White House in 1825
were dimmed by the bitter
politics of the election, paired
with her deep depression.
Though she continued her
weekly ―drawing rooms‖, she
preferred quiet evenings of
reading, composing music
and verse and playing her
harp.
In his diary for June 23, 1828,
her husband records her
―winding silk from several
hundred silkworms that she
had been rearing‖, evidently
in the White House.
When Adams lost his bid for
re-election, Louisa thought
she would be retiring to Mas-
sachusetts permanently, but
in 1831 her husband began
seventeen years of service in
the United States House of
Representatives. The un-
timely deaths of her two old-
est sons added to her bur-
dens.
―Our union has not been with-
out its trials,‖ John Quincy
Adams conceded. He ac-
k n o w l e d g e d m a n y
―differences of sentiment, of
tastes, and of opinions in re-
gard to domestic economy,
and to the education of chil-
dren between us.‖ But, he
added, ―she always has been
a faithful and affectionate
wife, and a careful, tender,
indulgent and watchful
mother to our children.‖
He died at the United States
Capitol in 1848; after which,
she remained in Washington
until her death in 1852, at the
age of 77.
Lessor Known Lady—Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams
Volume 9 Issue 2
Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams
Written and Presented by: Gay Scott at October Meeting
Gay Scott—Presenter
““Our union has
not been without
its trials,” John
Quincy Adams
conceded.”
A special thanks goes out
to our award winning au-
thor Dr. Ruth Rymer—
Chairman of the American
History Committee—for
coordinating these out-
standing talks. If you are
interested in reading Dr.
Ruth’s 2010 award winning
essay—”Growing Up in a
Nut House” please send an
e - m a i l t o
om.
Page 4
Contributor: Barbara Beratta
Thanks to the generosity of
several local businesses and
our outstanding dedicated
daughters and their friends, the
November Revolutionary Tea
Party Fund Raiser was a
smashing success.
The November Meeting/Tea,
which was catered by Regent
Cathy Olsen, sisters Alma and
Velma, daughter Heather, sis-
ter-in-law Nancy and friend
Darlene, was held in the beau-
tiful Fireside Room in Ross-
moor. It was such an elegant
affair with beautiful tablecloths,
shiny sterling silverware, and
china.
The finger sandwiches and
desserts were the most delec-
table, including tea, coffee, and
even champagne!
Regent Cathy Olsen attrib-
utes the delicious food in
large part to excellent ingredi-
ents. Bread for the sand-
wiches—which was beyond
wonderful—was generously
contr ibuted by Diablo
Foods—Lafayette as was the
English Clotted Cream for the
scones. The manager of
Peets Coffee in Lafayette
also donated the outstanding
tea and coffee—despite hav-
ing already reached his dona-
tion quota for the month!
Regent Cathy and Vice Re-
gent Geri discovered that the
manager of the Concord
Costco has a very active sis-
ter in DAR. They were unable
to get her to join our Chapter
but Concord Costco did con-
tribute toward the wonderful
smoked salmon, black forest
ham and a few dozen eggs
for the egg salad sandwiches.
Classically trained Concert
Pianist Nadia Blank enthralled
guests for over an hour on
the room’s beautiful grand
piano—compliments of Past
Regent Gay Scott.
We had an attendance of
over 75 people, quite a crowd
for this year’s annual fund-
raiser! Thank you to all for
your generous support. A
special thank you Geri Willin-
ger for sponsoring a table and
to several members who
could not attend but gener-
ously contributed to this
worthwhile fund raiser!
REVOLUTINARTY TEA PARTY FUND RAISER—
STANDING ROOM ONLY!
Mt. Diablo Chapter
Page 5
E laine Stevens, born in Brooklyn, NY (the
home of her patriot relative, Peter Wyckoff), was raised in Bethlehem, PA. However, she has resided in California for almost 40 years, the last 25 in Danville. Elaine obtained a BS from Kent State and an MA from Cal State Long Beach. After graduation, she became a public school administrator of vocational programs in Or-ange County California. Fol-lowing this, she worked for 15 years in Human Resources at the Lawrence Livermore Na-tional Laboratory. Elaine is married and has one cat. Her hobbies are travel-
ing, downhill skiing, making movies on her Apple, and knitting. In February she and her hus-band are moving to The Vil-lages in Florida, where all their retired family plan to live.
W hitney was born in Washington, DC,
and grew up in Falls Church, Virginia. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a BS in Geology, and from Colorado School of Mines with an MSc in Geo-physics. Whitney lives in Danville with her husband, and two daugh-
ters. She likes to cycle, and travel, and is an avid sup-porter of the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. Whitney became a member of our chapter in October 2011 with her ancestor George
Poage of VA.
HOLLY STOVER
H olly was born in King-ston, New York. It is a little town next to
Woodstock NY. After gradu-ating from Poughkeepsie High School, she attend East-ern Kentucky University where she obtained a BS in Criminal Justice. Prior to embarking on her current career as a Human Resource professional, Holly was an active duty Army Offi-cer and a Federal Agent. Holly and her husband have two daughters. Lauren (age 13) is the CA State Society Children of American Revolu-tion (CSSCAR) state Re-cording Sec. Leah (age 11) is CSSCAR state organization secretary. Holly is the Senior Society President of Captain Molly Corbin CSSCAR group which Mt. Diablo sponsors.
Our Veteran’s Chairman
Natalie Griffin is well on the
road to recovery!
She was able to attend our
annual TEA with the help of
her caretaker. Congratula-
tions Natalie! You have ac-
complished so much! .
We were excited that Valerie
Jo Remley, who continues
Contributor: Barbara Beretta
Stefani Miller, devoted
daughter both to our Chapter
and Dr. Ruth Rymer, is re-
covering from a recent stay in
the hospital. We missed her,
her mom, and her Aunt Sally
at the TEA . We wish her a
speedy recovery and hope to
see them all next year.
her battle with breast cancer,
was well enough to attend the
TEA and lead us in an A+
performance of the Star
Spangle Banner!
Well wishes to Vice Regent
Jean Brown’s husband – out
of hospital - moved to rehab.
Prayers and get well wishes
continue to be sent your way!
Meet three New Members
Sunshine Report
Volume 9 Issue 2
Please contact
Chaplain Margo
Heltne if you know
of a member who is
ill, has lost a family
member, or if you
hear about the
death of a member:
mt.diablo.chapter@
gmail.com
”In February Elaine
and her husband
are moving to The
Villages in Florida,
where all their retired
family plan to live”
Elaine Stevens
Whitney Kirkendall
Holly Stover
Page 6
October 2011
Hi Ladies,
Just wanted to let you all know how good
we have it at home...
If you ever woke up in the middle of the
night half asleep, and had to go to the
bathroom, just remember you did not
have to grab your gun, toilet paper and a
flash light and walk about 2 blocks to use
a porta potty. Now think about this in
about a month or so it will be below freez-
ing and there will be snow on the
ground...
If you ever went to your local store to pick
up some personnel hygiene items, and
3/4 of the shelves were empty and if there
were any products i.e. shampoo, deodor-
ant, tampons, pads, you have one choice.
Lets see, Hair Spray must be the "Crank
Cocaine" of this country because they
never have any, females actually talk
about this in passing, wondering if they
forgot that there are lots of civilians and
female service members in this country
Troops Search for Hairspray in Afghanistan
Serving God, Home and Country
through historic preservation,
education and patriotism
December Upcoming Events
December 7 World War II—Mt. Diablo Light Beacon meeting at 2:15 p.m.
Countrywood Shopping Center Treat Blvd [email protected]
December 10 Christmas in the Parlor Tea—Glendora State House, Glendora, CA
December 10 Livermore Veterans Holiday Party, 9:00 a.m.—1:30 a.m. 4951 Arroya
Rd, Livermore, CA 94550
December 13 Chapter Meeting—11:30 a.m.—2:30 p.m. 1010 Creekside Clubhouse
Rossmoor, Stanley Dollar Drive, Walnut Creek, CA 94595
Hostesses: Geri Willinger, Nancy McConnell, Judy Norris, Ella
Jones, Eleanor Tucker
Mt. Diablo Chapter
that do not want to cut there hair off just
so that they can minimize the need for
hair care products.
Let's see, if the military was a "for Profit"
organization I would think they owned
stock in Dove and Pert, because those
are the 2 shampoos they always have.
They sell no products that I would con-
sider for face care except some generic
brand of 80 proof sun screen.
I brought my make-up and after 2 days, I
gave up. This place is so dusty that you
can physically sometimes see dust on
your eye lashes, non-gloss SPH Chap
Stick, and a moisturizing sunscreen is all
you need. It's funny because the Ger-
mans and Swedish women get "Dolled"
up every day. Not the U.S. solders, cuz
we live in tents and have porta-potties;
they live in buildings with indoor showers
and toilets, and have a saloon over in the
living area, Yes, perms, coloring, mani-
cures, pedicure, massages, we can use
Their facilities if there are appointments
Catherine Phillips-Olsen, Regent
Mt. Diablo Chapter DAR
E-mail: [email protected]
WWW.DAR-MTDIABLOCHAPTER.ORG
available when we can get away.
Our laundry service is HORRIBLE at best!
Your clothes almost smell worse when
you get them back, then when you turned
them in. One of my American roommates
told me a trick to put a laundry detergent
sheet in one of your pockets and the work-
ers don’t check you pockets so at least
you know soap was used on your clothes.
I have not gotten any strangers clothes
back yet, and I am pretty sure all my stuff
has came back to me, but I have only
turned in laundry twice now.
Not to replace any of my friends back
home but I now have a few new friends
here they are called; baby wipes, hand
sanitizer, fabreeze, : )
Miss each and every one of you,
Remember even if there is a day you can't
afford to buy that new item at your favorite
store, you still are in a much better situa-
tion than each and every service member
here in this beautiful country. Hugs, Kathy
SFC Kathy Vargas
Imagine heading off to your local drug store to pick up a can of hairspray. When you get there you
find—well NOTHING—and learn that this particular item is not only out-of-stock but will most likely
never be on the shelf. SFC Kathy Vargas, one of our newly adopted Project Patriot soldiers,
shares her experiences searching for feminine hygiene items in Afghanistan with best friend—new
Chapter member Holly Stover (see page 5). SFC Vargas is affectionately known as ―Aunt Kathy‖
to Holly’s girls. Below is contact information to send a package or a warm holiday hello to Kathy:
SFC Kathy Vargas, RC-N Fusion Center, IC Marmal, APO AE 09368. You can also donate to our
Project Patriot care package fund at www.dar-mtdiablochapter.org or send a check to Treasurer
Janet O’Connell-Mangham, 1525 Bismark Lane, Brentwood, CA 94513-6904