Patriotic group opens new chapter 1

The officers of the Daughters of the American Revolution’s new chapter in Jamaica are Wilhelmena Kelly, left, regent; Cate Ludlam, vice regent; Jane Ferrone, treasurer; and Lynn Luehrs, registrar.

The Daughters of the American Revolution opened a new chapter on June 12 at the Prospect Cemetery Chapel at York College in Jamaica — the first chapter the organization has founded in eight years.

The launch of the Increase Carpenter Chapter makes two chapters in Queens. The Major Jonathan Lawrence Chapter is located in Jackson Heights.

One of the reasons the launch was held at the Prospect Cemetery Chapel was because 53 patriots are buried there, said Cate Ludlam, vice regent of the chapter and president of the Prospect Cemetery Association.

The new chapter took about six months to start, despite the fact that the national organization allows a maximum of two years to complete a launch.

The DAR, which was founded in 1890, is a women’s service organization that aims to promote American patriotism and preserve American history.

Even though the chapter opened in Jamaica, Wilhelmena Kelly, the chapter’s regent, said the group is not confined to Southeast Queens.

“I hope to just raise the general awareness of the history of the borough,” Kelly said. “It’s a commitment to commemorate and celebrate and raise the level of patriotism.”

When she was head of the Manhattan chapter, the group’s New York State regent requested that she increase the organization’s presence in Queens.

Ludlam added, “We have all been encouraged to grow the organization — to add members.”

There are five chapters in Manhattan, one in Staten Island, two in Brooklyn and now two in Queens. The Bronx is the only borough without a chapter. Kelly said it would be nice to have a branch in the Bronx, which will probably be the organization’s next step in expansion.

There are no plans to add another Queens chapter anytime soon because the members are still working on developing workshops for the Jamaica chapter, Kelly said.

Starting in the fall, Kelly hopes, the chapter will host monthly sessions that will offer free research on one’s genealogy. The sessions will be open to all — not just members — who are interested to find out if they have a family patriot — someone on the American side during the Revolution. Those whose parents or grandparents are immigrants can still learn about their family history, despite not having a patriot in their family.

She added that the German Genealogy Group on Long Island has been very helpful to the organization because its services are not limited to people of German descent.

Members of the DAR participate in several service activities, which are up to the discretion of the individual, Kelly said. Those include raising money to send calling cards to soldiers overseas and providing Christmas gifts to veterans. The organization is open to all women who are at least 18 years old.

Kelly said she hopes that through the expansion the value of history will be rekindled because Americans owe their patriots recognition.

“Even though it was 200 years ago, it’s important that we do remember them,” Kelly said.

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