PERPETUAL MEMORIAL WEB SITE RESOLUTION ADOPTED
I am excited! At the November Board of Managers meeting in New Braunsfels a momentous resolution was passed. Our TXSSAR board requested that the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution investigate the feasibility of initiating a Perpetual Memorial Web Site. This should be on the NSSAR Trustees' agenda in March, 2001. What does this mean to the rank and file member? This will be a major genealogical event.
Currently we have only a few options to preserve our heritage. We can write our family history, but most books last no more than a hundred years or more. With acid free paper and special ink, we might even double its lifetime. Digital information on CD's will deteriorate long before that. A Perpetual Memorial Web Site will last as long as the SAR is in existence!
Since one of the main objectives of our organization is to perpetuate the history of our country; and the pedigrees of each of the American Patriots, and their respective descendants, a Perpetual Memorial Web Site, will allow each of us to place information about ourselves and our family online that will remain there in perpetuity. Similar commercial operations charge $1,000.00 or more for a limited amount of web space (see http://www.memorials.com). There is no assurance that they will be in business 100 years from now, or even in the next decade. Since the SAR is a perpetual organization, and as we already have a perpetual class of membership, all that remains is to refine the program to our use and determine the costs.
If adopted, the NSSAR committee will need folks with web page expertise, as well as genealogists to work on this committee. Since I came up with the idea and encouraged the San Antonio chapter to submit the resolution to TXSSAR, and because Dick Arnold appointed me as state chairman, I will tell you how I envision this web page, subject of course to necessary changes.
Ultimately, each of us should have the alternative, for an additional charge to place on the World Wide Web, for future generations to find, the following information prepared by us:
1. Our autobiography or a short biographical sketch
2. Our photograph and digitized picture of our family members
3. Our ancestor pedigree, in book or chart form (or the simple pedigree to our patriot and supplemental ancestors).
4. Our descendants, in book or chart form
5. Digital photographic copies of important documents, medals, awards, etc.
6. An open letter from you to your descendants
7. Digital copies of books or articles we have written Upon your death, your family and your chapter can add to your web page, by including:
8. A Memorial Resolution (The San Antonio chapter provides a memorial resolution to the next of kin; reads it at a chapter meeting and publishes it in our newsletter and on our web site).
9. Your obituary
10. Eulogies from friends and other fraternal societies.
What better genealogical treasure trove for your future generations? Imagine if you will that one of your direct descendants 300 years from now is searching for his lineage. Can you imagine how happy he will be to discover that his ancestor had the forethought to preserve this invaluable information in perpetuity? How would you like to be able to find such a storehouse of information about one of your patriot ancestors? Or an ancestor about whom you have not been able to find much?
This program may be tied in with the Perpetual Membership program of the SAR or perpetual members may be allowed to participate at a less expensive rate. At this point I am soliciting input from every member. Tell me how you would like to see this program operate and if you would like to be on the committee.