Chapter Activities and Projects

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DAR Local Chapter Activities

Don Jose De Ortega Chapter, NSDAR, members are dedicated to perpetuating the principles upon which the National Society was founded in 1890. We honor God, Home, and Country, while working to promote patriotism, historic preservation, and education. The chapter has its special way of honoring these precepts. In the past 52 years, we have become known as the chapter that does a lot of research. This is due, in large part, to the fact that we want to identify as many of our patriot ancestors as possible. We believe that by identifying them and learning their stories, we give honor to their service and the sacrifices they made to establish the free society we all now enjoy. Hand in hand with our interest in genealogy is our desire to do whatever we can to assist the community at large. Shown below are a few of our accomplishments and what we believe are some wonderful reasons to be a part of the Don Jose De Ortega Chapter, NSDAR.

Awards to Local Schools		Promoting Patriotism
Conservation		Scholarships
Historic Preservation		Service for Veterans
Literacy Promotion		Support of DAR Schools
Philanthropy		Women's Issues

Awards to Local Schools

Chapter awards to schools in the San Fernando Valley

Scholarships

The chapter established a scholarship to encourage higher education. Endowed by a bequest from Marcia Havens Stowers, the scholarship is given each year to a college or post-graduate student majoring in the fields of medicine or education, with emphasis on math and science. Some examples of qualified areas of study are laboratory technician, nursing, doctor of medicine, and teachers of math or science.

Support of DAR Schools

The Don Jose De Ortega Chapter, NSDAR, supports each of the five DAR-supported schools located in rural and disadvantaged areas through annual donations earned by chapter fundraisers held throughout the year.

Philanthropy

Funds from the Don Jose De Ortega Chapter, NSDAR, Stowers Endowment Fund enable us to annually donate to worthwhile causes. Since receiving the endowment in 1998, we have donated funds toward the following: a hospital fund at Landstuhl Germany; the recognition of chapter family members serving in the military; honoring veterans on the 60th anniversary of the Korean War; honoring female veterans at the 60th anniversary of WWII; purchasing a memorial stone and plaque at the Santa Barbara Mission; donating additional funds to the Mission; purchasing a seat in DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., to honor Jose de Ortega's 5th generation granddaughter, and presenting three scholarships to students whose family member served in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The chapter donated copies of the DAR Patriot Index to the Los Angeles Public Library, West Valley Branch, the DAR California State House in Glendora, and the LDS Family History Center in Northridge, California. Donations have been given to the NSDAR Seimes Microfilm Center to ensure the preservation of census records and to the NSDAR Library in Washington, D.C.

Members collect pull tabs from aluminum cans for a local McDonald House that recycles them for cash to purchase needed items. Loose change is collected at most regular chapter meetings and sent to the Mountains Restoration Trust to be used toward replanting local burn areas.

Each year, members vote on which four of their favorite charities will receive funding from the chapter Marcia Havens Stowers Endowment Fund. In the past, donations have been made to Guide Dogs of America, MEND (Meet Each Need with Dignity), restoration and improvement of the NSDAR historic buildings in Washington, D.C., Fisher House Foundation, Homes for our Troops, New Directions for Veterans, Operation Gratitude, American Cancer Society Relay for Life (members annually walk or run in the relay), Blind Children's Center, Downtown Women's Center, Volunteer League of San Fernando Valley, Southwest Reservation Aid, Tree People, Warrior Canine Connection, and the San Fernando Valley Rescue Mission.

Conservation

Conservation is a core value of DAR both nationally and our chapter. From raising funds for reforestation of burn areas, planting milkweed for monarch butterfly habitats, carpooling or sharing conservation tips in our monthly newsletter, we look for ways to help the planet. Individually and as a chapter we support a wide variety of environmental and wildlife protection groups. Some of the tree planting organizations we support are Mountains Restoration Trust; Tree People; and Penny Pines, a group that works with reforestation of our national forests.

One of our past regents leads the newly created DAR District VIII Conservation Committee. Her first project was to spearhead the planting of eight oak trees in a local historical cemetery that our chapter has supported for many years. With the initial goal of having the seven district chapters share the cost of planting one tree in a new area being developed by the cemetery, she was pleasantly surprised when all seven chapters contributed enough to purchase eight trees. A rose garden was also installed. Don Jose de Ortega Chapter members are proud to add to our legacy there.

Following up on the successful tree project, we are participating in a NexTrex Recycling Challenge. Our district has one year, which was purposely planned for July 4, 2025 through July 4, 2026, to collect 1,000 pounds of soft plastic. This plastic will be recycled into a bench that will be installed by our trees. We are now past the halfway point and expect to easily meet the challenge. Future plans call for the installation of a NSDAR Historical marker on the bench.

Always on the lookout to find new ways to support conservation, chapter members work with other state and district DAR chapters to recycle empty prescription pill bottles for use by doctors and pharmacists in medically challenged countries and pull tabs for Ronald McDonald Houses. Nearly all chapter members participate in conservation activities by recycling as much as possible, maintaining bird feeders and planting drought-tolerant plants. We are especially proud of one member who received a DAR Conservation Medal for her many conservation activities in her neighborhood, workplace, and church.

Whether feeding the birds, planting milkweed, adding mulch to our gardens to conserve water, recycling, refusing plastic straws or using less single-use plastic overall, we are committeed to doing our part to protect and restore the environment. We are busy ladies with people to see, lots of places to go and things to do! Care to join us? Contact the chapter registrar or regent at

Historic Preservation

The chapter has a long history of interest in historic preservation. One year, historically correct silk flags, hand made by founding Regent Muriel Fisher, were presented to Mission San Juan Capistrano and Mission San Fernando Rey de España in the San Fernando Valley.

The chapter has a strong connection to Oakwood Memorial Park as two of our regents and many members and HODARs rest there. Years ago, members mapped the park. Two years ago, members created a book of veterans interred at Oakwood.

In response to park management's request, the chapter plans to begin marking gravesites needing attention for park staff to address. Most recently, chapter members donated toward the purchase of eight oak trees that were planted in a newly opened area.

Several chapter members serve as docents at historic homes and museums in Los Angeles County and volunteer at local historical societies working on displays, exhibits, and publicity.

Another of our chapter members serves on the Roanoke, Virginia, Booker T. Washington Monument Committee and worked with another Virginia group to obtain Historical-Cultural Landmark status for the Hook-Powell-Moorman Farm (pictured above), a property owned by her family since the early 18th century. She currently coordinates restoration efforts.

While on vacation, a member discovered at least ten American Revolutionary War veterans buried in the Plymouth Northside Presbyterian Cemetery in Plymouth, New York, where she photographed and groomed the gravesites as much as possible. Through genealogy research, she located a descendant of one of the soldiers, as well as a local person who could restore the headstone. As a result of her efforts, 18th century Luther Gleason's 21st-century descendants have had the headstone restored and returned to standing position. Plans are now underway for the chapter to join forces with the local DAR chapter to place DAR markers on all the graves. We remain committed to learning about the historical buildings in and around the San Fernando Valley and to identifying a project we can support.

Literacy Promotion

Chapter members are actively involved in volunteering as reading tutors for pre-school and middle school students as well as volunteering to teach adults to read through the program "Empowering Adults through Literacy." We also donate books to local libraries, the Sepulveda Veterans Administration Hospital, and reading list items to DAR schools.

Our newest project involves working more closely with individual schools in the San Fernando Valley area. In support of the NSDAR Community Classroom Project, members contacted neighborhood schools to learn more about which schools would like to receive books for their classrooms and libraries. In the first month of this program, we donated to two school libraries, three classrooms, and provided special books for a remedial reading class. This ongoing project will expand in the coming year.

Service for Veterans

Don Jose De Ortega Chapter, NSDAR, members are dedicated to doing all we can to assist the social service workers at the Sepulveda Veterans Administration (VA) Medical Center. Chapter members and their husbands volunteer countless hours each week to work at the Sepulveda VA Medical Center’s refreshment room, also known as the "Coffee Cart."

The chapter donates money to purchase taxi vouchers for veterans with no other form of transportation home after their treatments. We also fund prizes for the very popular monthly Bingo games, collect gently-worn clothing for the VA clothing closet, non-perishable food for the food pantry, and household items for the residential units on the Sepulveda VA grounds.

Our annual Flag Day Luncheon's table centerpieces are made up of large baskets of non-perishable food donated by members and given to the VA food pantry following the Flag Day event. The donated food generally supplies the pantry with enough food to last over the summer months.

At our first Thank You for Your Service Luncheon, approximately 140 veterans feasted on sandwiches, salads, chips, cookies, Starbucks coffee, and Menchies frozen yogurt. A dozen chapter members served food donated by Sharkey's Mexican Grill, Jersey Mikes, Urbane Cafe, Weilers Deli, Beverly Glen Deli, ZPizza, Olive Garden, Chick-fil-A, Menchies, Starbucks, Costco, Whole Foods, and Mrs. Beasley's Cakes. When the chapter's community liaison visited the businesses and told them about the luncheon plans, they jumped on the bandwagon! After lunch, several gift cards donated by local supermarkets were raffled to the veterans. At the end of the day, there were so many smiling faces in the recreation room that it was hard to tell who was happier -- chapter members or the veterans.

Promoting Patriotism

All patriotic holidays are recognized and members are urged to fly their American flags on holidays and year-round. Our chapter promotes patriotism in several ways, the most obvious being our annual Flag Day Luncheon Celebration with its red, white, and blue theme, topical presentations, flag tributes and donations of collected food to the VA food bank.

A member's estate left the chapter thousands of small commemorative American flags. The chapter distributed them to schools and other chapters with information about the flags in Constitution Week packets and for use in class research projects.

The chapter supports Wreaths Across America annually. In 2022, the chapter ordered 170 patriot dog tags to be placed on a Don Jose de Ortega Chapter tree in the California Grove in the Wreaths Across America forest. Chapter members' many donations and activities related to veterans and active-duty military throughout the year show our ongoing patriotism.

Women's Issues

We have an active Women's Issues Committee that concentrates on health, career, and family issues for women. We enjoy emphasizing a positive approach to these subjects.

Our ancestors had completely different issues for women: in battling for suffrage, abolition, and in working outside the home. We have had programs on Catherine Beecher; Sara J. Hale, the editor of Godey Ladies Book and the "Mother of Thanksgiving"; and Elizabeth Peabody; all of whom inspired advancement for women. Programs on the Lowell Mill girls and the Harvey girls stressed the changing history of women's place in our country.

We heard programs on teaching literacy to adults, enabling mothers to help their families, and on women in journalism. Including members in the discussion, we held a program on heart health. Brochures have been distributed on breast cancer, pre-diabetes, and other sources of general and specific medical information. Parkinson's disease was discussed at one of our recent luncheon meetings.

National Society Daughters of the American Revolution

California State Society Daughters of the American Revolution