It somehow seems fitting that I can post this piece today as it appears that most of us across the blogoshpere are living the dream this summer and doing exactly what we were meant to do… share our passion for Civil War history with others.

Rangers Mannie and Hoptak are back to work, walking the hallowed grounds at Antietam, and sharing the field’s history with park visitors. Eric Wittenberg is out on a bus tour doing the same with attendees of the Gettysburg Retreat Seminar. Richard Williams just helped a bright, home-schooled student with a research paper about Stonewall Jackson (BTW: she got an ‘A’). JD Petruzzi and Mike Nugent are up in Gettysburg doing talks about their new book on the retreat. Even ‘those’ whom we don’t always agree with have been attending some important seminars on the Civil War Sesquicentennial and how our beloved state intends to acknowledge it. The Society of Civil War Historians has also held meetings in recent weeks and many of our friends and associates including John Hennessy and Harry Smeltzer were in attendance. Andrew Duppstadt is always living the dream, working with various museum programs, and many others out there are just as busy preserving and presenting this subject that we hold so dear.

Therefore, it is with a great sense of pride that I share this wonderful video (below) that features an extraordinary young man named Richard Warren II, whose mother I have been consulting with over the last few weeks on the life and death of Richard Kirkland. I had mentioned in a previous post that this gifted nine-year old is participating in a ‘living timeline’ program in Salem, VA. His selection of character was “The Angel of Marye's Heights” and his performance is a brilliant testament to the Confederate humanitarian. This video that his mother sent me is of the dress rehearsal. I was so impressed that I promised to send young Richard a signed copy of ‘The Southern Cross,’ and to give his family a special tour of the Kirkland Monument on their next trip to Fredericksburg. I know that his family and I are both VERY proud and I bet that Richard Kirkland would be proud too.

This my friends, is exactly why we do what we do. Thank you Warren Family, (especially young Richard). Your portrayal of Sgt. Kirkland and his message of kindness is a blessing to us all.