 The
City of Richmond officials, C-I-C McMichael, and Virginia
Division Commander John Sawyer have all signed the Memorandum
of Agreement (MOA) between the Sons of Confederate Veterans
and the City of Richmond. This agreement does not transfer
the deed or title to Oakwood Cemetery - Confederate Section
to the SCV, but it will give the Virginia Division the sole
authority to place upright markers for each Confederate Veteran
buried there and improvements or markers of any kind. The
Virginia Division will also have the exclusive responsibility
of maintaining the 10 acres of grounds in the Confederate
section of Oakwood Cemetery.
The
SCV now has the authority to proceed with ordering
VA upright markers. According to the MOA, the upright stones
must be installed in an orderly manner, row by row, section
by section, and not in a random fashion. The small numbered
markers will be retained, straightened, and incorporated
into the final placement of the upright markers along with
any existing upright or flat markers previously placed by
family members.
We
hope to order and install 75 upright stones a month depending
on how quickly the Veterans Administration can complete them
and send them to us. The VA asked that we order only 10 upright
stones for a trial run and after that, we should be able
to order 75 at a time. Click
here to read the names on the first 10 stones ordered.
Click
here to view renovations made at Oakwood Confederate Cemetery.
This is an on-going project and additional renovation projects
will be posted as they occur.
Donations
are now being accepted to assist with the restoration project
and general improvements at this historical site. Please
make checks payable to:
Oakwood
Restoration Fund
P.O. Box 114
Beaverdam, VA 23015-0114
Your
donation may be tax deductible. Please contact your tax advisor
or consultant. Click here to
view and print a donation tri-fold brochure.
A Friends
& Descendants Association of Oakwood Confederate Cemetery is
now available to those who either have a loved one buried at
Oakwood Confederate Cemetery or those who wish to support Oakwood
and would like to be kept updated on any events taking place
at Oakwood. We plan to establish a newsletter to those who join.
The annual membership fee for the Friends & Descendants Association
is $25.00 and can be sent c/o Brandon Dorsey, P.O. Box 665, Lexington,
VA 24450. Click here
to download a form to fill out if you wish to join the Friends
& Descendants of Oakwood. More information
will be posted as it becomes available.
Click
here to read the history of how the Sons of Confederate
Veterans became involved in the preservation and restoration
of Oakwood Cemetery and our plan to have individual grave
markers placed on each grave to honor these fallen heroes.
Each
stone marks the resting place of 3 Confederate veterans
Click here to view links to news articles about Oakwood
Confederate Cemetery or other sites with information on Oakwood.
 
Footnote.com is working
in conjunction with the Virginia Division Sons of Confederate
Veterans to offer a 30% donation toward the Oakwood Restoration
Fund for each new membership they receive through the link
from our Web site (you
must click on the Footnote.com button below which has the affiliate coding
identifying the Virginia Division in order for Oakwood to receive the
donation. If you go directly to Footnote.com and sign up there, the donation
will not be sent to Oakwood).
 
NOTE: The
donation only applies to new subscriptions to Footnote and therefore
current Footnote members that use the automatic renewal option will
not receive the 30% donation to Oakwood. Current Footnote SCV members
would need to let their subscription expire and then sign up again
using the link from the Division Web site in order to qualify for the
30% donation to the Oakwood Restoration Fund.
|