2016 DAR Continental Congress

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The Daughters of the American Revolution, as an organization, has become a big part of my life.  It is my way of giving back to the local community and beyond, and building bonds with some pretty incredible women.  (Read my post on why I joined, and my trip to last year's Continental Congress in Washington, D.C.!)

I spent a full week in June in Washington, D.C., for the 125th Continental Congress, our annual convention.  With it being an anniversary and DAR election year, there were a record number of ladies present!  As you can imagine our Opening Night ceremonies were pretty magical.  I jokingly called it patriotic prom on Facebook, because the spirit of the events are just so moving... and AMERICAN!

I think one of my favorites parts about Continental Congress is getting to represent my Chapter at the National gathering.  I loved the Tennessee Dinner, because we got a photo of our members together!

I also enjoy that I get to cross paths with fellow Tennessee daughters, especially fellow Juniors and pages, from across the State who attend as well.  It's a wonderful mix of new friends and old friends, and it makes you feel united in your work.

Tennessee Pages

I worked for the week at our Junior Shoppe, one of our fundraising efforts for charity.  I won't go into detail here, but it was a cause I really enjoyed supporting these past two years!  I was on my feet a ton, and it was exhausting, but so worth it in the end.  There was so much hustle and bustle, tons of projects.  We accomplished a ton as a Society during the week, including a new GUINNESS WORLD RECORD title for “Most letters to military personnel collected in one month” with a total number of 100,904 cards!

Another perk?  I spent all day in our beautiful DAR buildings, a block or so from the White House, which are a wonderful part of our legacy.

Continental Congress is a blur, and it's hard to describe here in a post.  But I had to share some of my favorite snapshots.  I loved sharing a house with four of my Tennessee girlfriends.  I loved meeting new women, including one who is my distant cousin!  I loved doing something for a good cause.  Paging is hard work, but it's definitely good work.  I'm proud to be able to give the time, because I get just as much out of it as I put in.