MONTHLY MEETING

EZRA S. GRIFFIN CAMP #8

August 29, 2020

The Zoom meeting was called to order in ritualistic fashion by Commander Jerry Skotleski.

Other members in attendance were:

Officer Excused: Howard Wolfe, Treasurer

Guest: Danielle Shaffer, Ladies Bannen-Long Auxiliary #10

The minutes for the February meeting were read. (There were no meetings held from March to July due to the pandemic).  A motion was made to accept the minutes as read by Jim Jones and seconded by Mike Passero. All were in favor.

SICK MEMBERS:  

None

At this time, the meeting was paused as the Departed Brothers Ceremony could be conducted in ritualistic manner.  Those honored were:

Secretary Shaffer gave a brief eulogy on Brother Joe Long.  In essence he will certainly be missed by all who knew him.

APPLICATIONS:

New member Tyler Short is already a member and is with us today.  Dale Keklock has had 2 people fill out applications to join the Camp.  They are from Forest City and Archbald.  They were asked to hold off paying their dues until August/September as to not pay and receive a dues letter after.  Dues should be paid by February 2021 and a letter will be sent out in the next few weeks.

EAGLE SCOUT REPORT:

Jim Jones reported that during the pandemic, there has been no face-to-face meetings, awards given, etc.  Merit badges for walking, hiking, etc. are being earned.  He will be sending a letter out to local scout groups to tell them about us.

CORRESPONDENCE:

Since there are about 40 orders between the Department and General Orders, they were not read.  All were sent out to Members via email when received by Secretary Shaffer.  But Jim Jones brought up G.O. #35 on Lobbying and said that as a non-profit organization, we should remain silent as a group on the issues involving the removing of monuments, etc.  All members agreed.

OLD BUSINESS:

The finances were brought up as we are having trouble bringing in an income since we are no longer selling raffle tickets.  Bob Shaffer pointed out members of a committee to sit down and come up with a letter to send to local/corporate businesses to help sponsor us.

We are looking for places to meet as we can still not get into our meeting room.  Timothy Chase brought up the Clarks Summit High School Pavilion.  Bob will send out the 2019 budget out to members attending the meeting.

NEW BUSINESS:

The Lincoln Ceremony that is usually held in March has been delayed and will now be held on the weekend of Remembrance Day in November.

Memorial Day 2020 was held with members standing silently next to a grave of a Civil war soldier.  This is called a “Silent Sentinel.”  The group was interviewed by WNEP and the Scranton Times.  It was also said that once the pandemic is over, that our Museum would be hosted on “Down the Pennsylvania Road.”

The Dunmore Cemetery Tour by the Dearly Departed Players will be held on October 4^th from 2 – 4pm.  This event will be a drive thru event.

Norma Reese of the Forest Hill Cemetery contacted the Camp in finding out more on a man whose tombstone was found by a mailman in someone’s front yard.  This Spanish American War veteran currently has 2 tombstones in the Dunmore Cemetery.  Hal, Jerry and his nephew brought the stone to Norma.  The stone belongs to Corporal Charles S. Bailey of the 13^th Regiment who later transferred to the Engineer Battalion.  He was born in Lackawanna County, and died in Willets Point, NY.  The cause of death drowning.

PATRIOTIC INSTRUCTION:

PI Jerry O’Malley reported on April 9, 1865, the war has ended at Appomattox Corners.  May 29, 1865, President Johnson signs the Proclamation of Amnesty and Pardon.  Jerry also read an article on the last Civil War pensioner who just dies this year.  The soldier was Mose Triplett.  His daughter Irene received a monthly check of $73.13 from the Department of Veterans Affairs as her father, deserted from the Confederates just before Gettysburg and later joined the Union army.  Irene died in May 31, 2020 at the age of 90.  Mose joined in 1862 to the North Carolina Regiment and defected on June 1863 to the Union Army.  He contracted a fever in Danville, VA and died in 1938.  Irene was the daughter of Mose and his second wife Elida Hall, who was born in 1924.  This article was found in the American Legion Magazine for 2020.

Hal brought up that in 1958 Congress granted pensions to surviving Confederate widows, but does not confer any privilege other than markers for graves of Confederate soldiers, nor does it grant Confederate soldiers status equal to those veterans of the United States military.

With no further business, the camp was closed in ritualistic manner by Commander Skotleski.

Respectfully submitted,

Robert C. Shaffer

Secretary