DAR members receive award for restoring local grave markers of Revolutionary War Veterans

The Chinkchewunska Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) has been actively promoting patriotism, historic perversation and education in Sussex County for more than 110 years.

The members of the Chinkchewunska Chapter do a majority of their work in small committees. One of these committees is the Commemorative Events Committee, which consists of two members, Ashley Ziccardi and Lisa Permunian. The Chinkchewunska’s Commemorative Events Committee was recently awarded the best Commemorative Events Committee in the Eastern Region of the DAR for their work in 2012.

The committee worked on many projects in 2012 including obtaining six new grave markers for Revolutionary War Veterans buried in Sussex County that replaced any illegible markers. Four of the grave markers were placed in the Hamburg Baptist Burying Ground, in Hamburg, for James Edsall, Henry Simpson, Conrad Tinkey and Henry Winfield. Two of the grave markers were placed in the Deckertown-Union and Papakating Cemetery, in Wantage, for Azariah Martin and Gasper Rorick.

In addition to obtaining new grave markers, the committee also worked on restoring cemeteries in the county. Over the years, graves fall over, sink into the ground, and become covered with dirt and grass. The committee worked to find graves that have become covered over the years in the North Hardyston Cemetery, in Hardyston, and were able to locate more than two-dozen graves that had been buried for decades.

The committee is also restoring a cemetery The Coe Smith Cemetery, in Wantage, that has been abandoned for more than 15 years. When the committee first began their work on the cemetery, it was so over grown that is was impossible to even enter the cemetery unless you were crawling under and over thick brush and fallen trees. Although a lot of work still needs to be completed, the change in the cemetery allows guests to now walk through most of the cemetery and many of the graves have been located, including one of the two Revolutionary War Veterans buried there.

The Commemorative Events Committee has to do many fund raisers to continue their work as a new grave marker for a Revolutionary War Patriot costs more than $500. The committee is selling cookbooks full of recipes from members of the Chinkchewunska Chapter and they are also selling wreaths for veterans through the organization Wreaths Across America. The committee will sell wreaths throughout the year and in December the wreaths will be placed on the graves of Revolutionary War Veterans throughout the county.

As winners of the Regional Award the committee is now in the running for receiving the National Award for the Best Commemorative Events Committee. Ashley Ziccardi can be contacted at ashleyziccardi@gmail.com and Lisa Permunian can be contacted at thinkpinklisa@yahoo.com.