Becoming a member of the Platte Purchase Daughters of the American Revolution not only has generated an interest in genealogy for local resident Judith Listrom, but also has given her the opportunity to help her community in many different ways. She has been a member since 1986.
Her mother did the research and added her to the DAR membership.
“When I found another ancestor, I did need to locate my grandmother’s birth certificate and found a little about where she was born,” Listrom said. “I didn’t really get involved until my children were out of school. Then I realized the potential of service projects that could be done and got involved.”
Each chapter has a registrar to help people locate paperwork and the national organization has a department that also helps.
“A project in progress is to locate patriots of the Revolution no one has claimed, but have the paperwork ready if someone needs it,” Listrom said.
There are two DAR chapters in Platte County. Platte Purchase has 62 members and White Alloe, based in Parkville, has more than 80 members.. Two years ago, White Alloe was the DAR Chapter of the Year in Missouri.
One of the missions of DAR, which was founded in 1890 and incorporated by an Act of Congress in 1896, is historic preservation.
“We own half of the Platte County Ben Ferrel Museum,” Listrom said. “Members of the chapter were instrumental in purchasing the property and getting it renovated and operational. Today the lead is taken by the Platte County Historical Society. Other chapters do similar work on their own historic places.”
DAR members have helped their community in many different ways. They have marked the gravestone of Joseph Morgan, a Revolutionary War soldier who died and was buried in the Platte City Cemetery.
Members clean up private cemeteries and place flags by the gravestones of deceased DAR members on Memorial Day. They have located and named the Revolutionary War patriots buried all over Missouri, including in Platte County. A plaque in Jefferson City in the Capital building names these patriots.
Education is also a priority for members. Educational endeavors are important to DAR to keep students aware of their history and ancestors so they can establish roots in the past as well as look to the future.
DAR also promotes essay contests in order to promote literacy. “Essays have to be planned out and carry a thought from the beginning to the ending,” Listrom said. “The subjects chosen by DAR often need to be researched and since they are usually historically founded, give students the chance to find out about events that may not be in their school curriculum. Maybe they can realize there is a lot to learn and they can do a lot of it on their own. With a monetary amount attached to winning essays, students can also learn literacy can pay.”
The national and state DAR organizations offer many scholarships in different areas such as political science, teaching, and nursing. There are also specific scholarships for Native Americans, and for special schools. “DAR owns one K-12 school and heavily supports four others, one offering help for fostered and troubled children and another is a university,” Listrom said. “DAR also offers summer support to students who need it.”
There is a Good Citizens Program for high school seniors in the local chapter area. The staff and students pick someone who has the qualities of dependability, service, leadership and patriotism and they are recognized by Platte Purchase at the awards assemblies. The national program has been in existence since 1934. “We support classrooms by donating school supplies and books of all sorts,” Listrom said. “We have donated close to 2,000 copies of the Constitution for classroom use.”
DAR treasures and promotes patriotism, which includes honoring all Veterans from the past or present, be they active or retired and letting them know how much they are appreciated. “Their war experiences affect their entire lives,” Listrom said. “It’s important to remember those who gave their all.”
The Patriots of the Month Program and the 50th Vietnam Commemoration, are programs where DAR collects biographies of veterans so their stories can be told. Members send cards to veterans, and they actively participate in Memorial Day and Veterans Day ceremonies each year.
“The founders of DAR wanted to have a service club which would keep our history fresh and known,” Listrom said. “They chose preservation to keep our historic sites from disappearing. An example is that MSSDAR is responsible for Arrow Rock being what it is today. It was on the Trail to the West and MSSDAR found the tavern, and raised money to renovate it and then campaigned to get Arrow Rock to be part of the State Parks System. MSSDAR also owns a cemetery where DAR members can choose to be buried.”
Local DARs choose from the 120 national committees in order to do what fits their community the best. Platte Purchase tries to help in all three areas of preservation, education and partriotism. “We try to keep patriots’ (our veterans in the Revolution) stories known, we publicize our good citizens, we establish relationships with schools,” Listrom said.
DAR raises money for Veteran services in three main ways: donations of material items, donations of money, and fundraising. The state DAR raised funds totaling $150,000 toward the building of the Fisher Houses in St. Louis, Columbia and in Kansas City.
Every year they support a Veterans group at Christmas with a Lights of Love campaign by donating money in the name of a veteran, or veterans. “One year we raised money for military helper dogs,” Listrom said. “This year we are raising money for a group called Caregivers on the Homefront. They support men who are wounded or disabled, physically and mentally, and their caregivers. Although the war may be over, veterans’ wounds are forever.”
They also work with the Center for Development and Civic Engagement, a volunteer organization that supports VA hospitals and support centers by sending clothing and hygienic items. Members also support the Tiny Houses for veterans.
“The State Regent is giving money to Veterans’ facilities, homes and hospitals,” Listrom said. “Chapters often visit Veterans’ homes and spend the afternoon with the residents. This money is coming from Missouri members.”
Patriot of the Month began in 2004. Each chapter can choose five Patriots of the Month per year. They are asked to participate, and if they wish to tell their story, the process can proceed. “I try to choose those who are well established in their communities, who have lived in the same place for many years who we know as a neighbor,” Listrom said. “When we get the military story, we find we have a hero living next door, who participated in dangerous and terrible events and survived to become our neighbor. We also look at the VFW and American Legion for outstanding members. There have been 1,169 to date.”
DAR is not generally known for its volunteer work. “The perceptions seem to be of ladies with many pins going to conventions,” Listrom said. “While there is protocol, the volunteer work is what is at the core of the organization.”
Of the 3,000 chapters in DAR there were 2,865,825 volunteer hours logged by early November, 2023. Platte Purchase logged more than 3,000 volunteer hours in 2022. These hours include working on DAR projects, working for other organizations, and helping neighbors.
“It came as a surprise to me to find out that DAR sent hundreds of chickens and other aid to France to help them recover their economy after World War I in return for their help for us in the Revolution,” Listrom said. “It was a national effort with all states participating. A few months ago, women veterans were honored by local DAR chapters.”
Listrom notes that when looking back on American history, Americans have been involved in many struggles and difficulties. “From the very beginning, Congress has argued and created political problems. This was done in the midst of the War of 1812, The Mexican-American War, the Civil War, The Spanish-American war, World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Gulf War and Afghanistan. The only reason, in my opinion we have survived as a country is because we have all chosen to obey the Rule Of Law as established in the U S Constitution. This document allows daily life to proceed through all the turmoil. History grounds us.”
Listrom believes the DAR, as a non-political group, seeks to keep us informed of our roots, of how we were conceived in the beginning in order to keep us aware of the sacrifices that have been made to keep our country growing in spite of all the complications. DAR’s work is done on a grassroots level with local chapters, on a state level with state projects and on the national level with its headquarters in Washington D.C., two blocks away from the White House.
For Listrom, the most rewarding part of being a member of DAR is that it gives her credibility when she interviews Veterans and gets their military stories. “Some have never told their stories before and I feel very privileged to be the first. I have realized that in joining the military, they temporarily gave up their personal choices to make this country safer for me. I try very hard to honor all they have been through and to let them know that they are appreciated for their service and for their contributions to society in civilian life.”