DAR displays at county libraries celebrate Constitution Week

Tuesday was Constitution Day; a day that kicks off a week dedicated to honoring the United States Constitution.

Honoring this annual designation, the local chapter of the Daughters of the Revolution (DAR) have displays celebrating the Constitution set up in the county’s many libraries.

This week’s celebration of the Constitution was started by the Daughters of the American Revolution. In 1955, DAR petitioned Congress to set aside September 17-23 annually to be dedicated for the observance of Constitution Week. The resolution was later adopted by the U.S. Congress and signed into public law on August 2, 1956, by President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

According to local DAR regent Paula Book, this children’s book outlines the Preamble to the Constitution with colorful art. She said the local chapter would like to raise enough money to put copies in all the local libraries.

“There are two documents of paramount importance to American history; the Declaration of Independence, which formed our national identity, and the United States Constitution, which set forth the framework for the federal government that functions to this day,” DAR President General Denise Doring VanBuren said. “While Independence Day is a well-recognized and beloved national holiday, fewer people know about Constitution Week, an annual commemoration of the living document that upholds and protects the freedoms central to our American way of life.”

The displays located in the libraries are part of the many activities across the country put on by members of DAR.

“In communities across America, Daughters of the American Revolution will erect hundreds of community displays, sponsor municipal proclamations, ring bells, and stage programs to raise awareness of the Constitution’s tenets and importance,” Vanburen said in a press release.

Locally, DAR member Linda Messmer annually takes decorations and documents to the local libraries for their displays. The libraries then decorate a public area with those pieces and add books and documents from the libraries’ collections.

DAR Regent Paula Book (left) and VUJ Librarian Donna Schmidt pose next to the display Donna created for this year’s celebration at the VUJ library.

DAR is a national group whose members are descendants of Americans who fought in the Revolutionary War.

Those interested in joining or learning more about DAR should contact Regent Paula Book at pauladenisebook@gmail.com.