THE WORK OF WRITERS AND STORYTELLERS
  
The week before Memorial Day I went on a walking tour of the University of South Carolina’s Columbia campus led by the Office of Veterans Affairs. The tour highlighted fallen Gamecocks – erstwhile students who had joined various war efforts from Gettysburg to Bagram. One of our last stops was at the World War Memorial, dedicated on May 30, 1935, and so named because they didn’t know it would only be the first World War.
 
Inside the memorial is a sanctuary and a stone inscription hangs on the wall, flanked by flags. It read, in part, “Soldiers of South Carolina this is your peoples’ tribute to the spirit that made you patriots ….” Several other lines espousing the nobility of the fallen finished with “God rest your souls and may He help the living to be worthy to reap in the fields of honor where you have sown.”
 
The inscription was written by Ambrose Elliot Gonzales, one of two brothers who founded The State newspaper (more info here). I couldn’t find the full inscription anywhere online but if you’d like to read it in its entirety, send me an email (kasie@clemsonroad.com) and I’ll share it with you.
 
It is often the work of writers, journalists, authors and storytellers, to propel the lessons and hopes of previous generations to those who follow. When we read historic documents and experience the intentions of their authors, we accept the responsibility to fulfill the promise of our collective future. One that will, hopefully, far surpass the past.
 
I hope you were each able to mark Memorial Day in some meaningful way. And yes, hot dogs with neighbors qualifies. Let our gratitude be a shared grace and our hope for the future a unifying passion.

Kasie Whitener
President, SCWA Board of Directors