By Nina Hendricks/Sarah Maples DAR
With the final 2013 membership statistics now collected, the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) recorded its most significant gain in new members in the history of the 123 year old organization. A record 13,906 new members were welcomed into the DAR in 2013! The previous record was set more than 90 years ago in 1921 when 13,805 women were accepted into the organization in that year.
As of January 1, 2014, the official DAR membership count for 2014 is 177,049, a net increase of 3,529 members from the official membership count from the beginning of 2013.
“We are extremely proud of this new membership milestone,” stated DAR President General Lynn Young. “The growing membership of the Daughters of the American Revolution represents our organization’s relevance in today’s ever-changing world as we continue to passionately honor our heritage, focus on the future and celebrate America!”
The local Sarah Maples chapter of DAR has had an increase also. At the beginning there had to be twelve members to start a new chapter. Several of our ladies came from the chapter in Athens and now thirty years later we have around eighty members. This past two or three years we lost several of our ladies. What the Texas ladies are most proud of is our new NSDAR President Lynn Young. She is the first from Texas to hold the job but hopefully not the last.
Any woman, 18 years or older who can prove lineal, bloodline descent from an ancestor who aided in achieving American independence is eligible to join the DAR. Each DAR applicant must provide genealogical research that documents her lineage back to an ancestor from the Revolutionary War era. The application and source documentation must provide proof of relation for each generation going back to the Patriot ancestor, as well documentation for
The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, a worldwide service organization with nearly 3,000 chapters, is devoted to promoting historic preservation, education and patriotism. With more than 177,000 members, it has been one of the nation’s most active service organizations since its founding in 1890. In just a few examples: Daughters provide financial support for scholarships, fund schools for underserved children, and volunteer time to local programs such as literacy tutoring. Members contribute thousands of hours of volunteer time in the nation’s VA hospitals each year as well as provide support and encouragement to active military personnel through various programs. In communities across the country, local chapters distribute thousands of U.S. Flags each year, and welcome thousands of new citizens. For more information on the work of the DAR and how to become a member, visit www.dar.org.