2, April 1876 (+130)
Headquarters
Dept. of the Missouri
Sargent, Nebraska
Ladies and gentlemen of the Grand Army of the Frontier,
I am both honored and humbled by the confidence placed in me by General Scout and by the many offers of congratulations from you, my friends. I pray that I might live up to the honor y'all have entrusted to me.
My first order of business will be to assign the members of my staff. At the risk of sounding like a former President, I intend to choose a diversified staff. By that I mean that I hope to choose a staff that will reflect the many facets of the Grand Army of the Frontier. A command staffed with CAS shooters, BPCR shooters, Living Historians, reenactors, geneologists, military historians and old west history buffs. And a staff that will reflect the widespread geography of the Department of the Missouri.
While it isn't historically accurate, I intend to make myself accessable to the rank and file of my department and to stress communication. As evidence of this, I'd like to point out my phone number and address under my avitar. I often feel there is too much anonymity on the internet. While I may be too trusting as a result of living way out in the sticks in the middle of nowhere, the posting of my phone number and address is meant to fight that anonymity and to give department members additonal means to contact me. I will encourage (though not require) the members of my staff to follow my lead.
Another way I hope to encourage communication will be the establishment of an electronic newsletter. To make this newsletter work, I will need articles, dates of shoots and other GAF affiliated events, basically anything you think might be of intrest to the other members of the Department of the Missouri.
Yesterday, following the announcement of my promotion, I had the oppertunity to speak with Dr. Bob and we decided that he would start a Yahoo Group to further facilitate communication with members of the Department. He will also be forming a "speakers bureau" that can provide military history speakers to groups and organizations.
Terry Lane and Quick Fire have suggested that the Blue River Regulaters can host a GAF shoot possibly in September or October and I am actively pursueing a Dept. shoot here in central Nebraska sometime within the next year.
Revitalization of the Department is a lofty goal but with your help I know we can and WILL succeed.