All United Daughters of the Confederacy were invited to the 16th Annual Arizona Division Reunion & Convention for the Sons of Confederate Veterans on June 5, 2010 at Bill Johnson’s Big Apple Restaurant, 19th Avenue at Bell Road in Phoenix.

The official Confederate Memorial Day is April 26. However, since that is a Monday, Memorial Services were held on Sunday, April 25, 2010 with the Sons of Confederate Veterans. The services were held at Evergreen Cemetery in Tucson. Flags and flowers were placed on the graves prior to the Memorial Services.

Gretchen Brittain, Chapter President of UDC John R. Baylor in Tucson, with the Sons of the Confederate Veterans at the Confederate Memorial Day Ceremony

Members of the UDC Arizona Division attended the Confederate Memorial Day Ceremony hosted by Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV). The ceremony was held at Greenwood Memorial Cemetery, in Phoenix, AZ. We placed flowers on the graves of fallen soldiers, followed by a wonderful ceremony by the SCV. We do this each year, in honor of our ancestors who died on the battlefield in the War Between the States.

We then moved onto Wesly Bolin Park in Phoenix for another ceremony at the monument that was originally donated to the City of Phoenix by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1961. Flowers were respectfully laid at the base of the monument by UDC members and also by members of a church youth group who was visiting the park.

Mrs. Norma Laitem, President of the UDC Arizona Division, gave a wonderful speech. The attendees were led in prayer by the UDC Arizona Division Chaplain, Barbara Brai. Not only was this a celebration of our fallen heroes, but also a wonderful learning experience for the children. They felt special to be a part of our ceremony.

On Saturday, April 17, 2010, soldiers from the 1880s were honored. They were originally buried in Tucson, and were reburied in the Southern Arizona Veterans’ Cemetery in Sierra Vista last year. Some who once served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War went on to serve in the American Army, side-by-side with those who fought for the Union, during the Indian wars in the late 1800s in Arizona.

The event included taped music of the National Anthem and the firing of a cannon. Emilie Siarkiewicz, Vice President of UDC in the Arizona Division, and Gretchen Brittain, President of John R. Baylor Chapter in Tucson, were in attendance.

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