Planning underway for 2026 celebration by local DAR chapter
By Amy Sunleaf Chapter Regent Lawrence Van Hook Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution
We will officially celebrate the semiquincentennial or 250th birthday of the United States next year on July 4th.
On that day in 1776, members of the Second Continental Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence announcing the Colonies’ separation from England which is why the Fourth of July is sometimes called Independence Day. For the past few years, the nonpartisan America 250 initiative, along with several patriotic organizations, have been planning special celebrations. Members of Lawrence Van Hook Chapter, NSDAR started commemorating America 250 in 2023 by entering our first float in the Heritage Days parade. That fall, we sent bags of tea to Massachusetts for the reenactment of 1773’s Boston Tea Party. Last October, we celebrated the 250th anniversary of the Edenton Tea Party. This year has some significant dates as well, and we’d like you to join us in remembering them.
April 18, 2025, will mark 250 years since Paul Revere, William Dawes, Samuel Prescott, and Israel Bissell road from Boston through toward Lexington and Concord to warn citizens that “the regulars were coming out.”
The next day, April 19, marks the 250th anniversary of the “shot heard ‘round the world” and the beginning of the American Revolution. The War for Independence continued for seven more years, officially ending after the signing of the Treaty of Paris on September 3, 1783. Lawrence Van Hook Chapter will be celebrating significant anniversaries of the Revolutionary War until 2033 and invite you to join us.
Important upcoming anniversaries in 2025 include the 250th birthday of the United States Army on June 14; this is also Flag Day, as well as the date we have chosen to dedicate our Patriots Marker near the Bellevue Veterans Plaza and Jackson County Freedom Rock. We hope you will join us at our 1 p.m. program and reception.
On October 11, 1775, the Navy and Marine Corps will concurrently celebrate 250 years as well.
The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a women’s service organization whose members can trace their lineage to an individual who contributed to securing American independence during the Revolutionary War. Today’s DAR is dynamic and diverse, with over 185,000 members in 3,000 chapters in the United States and abroad. DAR members annually provide millions of hours of volunteer service to their local communities across the country and world. DAR chapters participate in projects to promote historic preservation, education, and patriotism. Over one million members have joined the organization since its founding in 1890.
If you are interested in learning more about DAR membership, visit [https://isdar.org/chapters/lawrencevanhook/e] or contact [[email protected]].
About DAR
The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in 1890 to preserve the memory and spirit of those who contributed to securing American independence. For more than 130 years, the DAR has strived to bring awareness to the honorable sacrifices and enduring legacy of all patriots who fought for America’s freedom. Through the DAR Genealogical Research System (www.dar.org/GRS), the public can access a free database of information amassed by the DAR about these patriots. DAR is a nonprofit, nonpolitical women’s service organization with more than 185,000 members in approximately 3,000 chapters worldwide. Any woman 18 years or older, regardless of race, religion, or ethnic background, who can prove lineal descent from a patriot of the American Revolution is eligible for membership. DAR members passionately carry out the timeless mission of promoting historic preservation, education and patriotism. To learn more about the work of today’s DAR, visit www.dar.org.
