ABILENE — The Kansas Society Sons of the American Revolution will host an SAR Compatriot Grave Marking Ceremony honoring the membership and memory of President and General of the Army Dwight David Eisenhower. The event will take place at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 2, on the grounds of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home, 200 SE 4th St., Abilene. President General Larry Guzy will deliver the memorial address.
Justin Engleman, Great Bend, is an event coordinator. He is president of the Sons of the Plains Chapter, Sons of the American Revolution.
The national SAR Color Guard will present the colors at the event, with Lonny Liljegren, Lindsborg, playing bagpipes. The President General and South Central District Vice President General will lay a wreath on behalf of the SAR, Kansas Society Daughters of the American Revolution Regent Kathryn West and Vice Regent Susan Metzger will lay a wreath on behalf of the DAR and Mary Eisenhower, the president’s youngest granddaughter and her son Merrill Eisenhower Atwater will lay a wreath on behalf of the Eisenhower family. More than two dozen other wreaths from various SAR and DAR chapters across the nation will be laid in Eisenhower’s memory as well.
The event is open to the public and attendees are asked to bring a lawn chair and plan to spend the day touring the facilities and enjoy an evening of music, which begins at 7 p.m. with the First Infantry Division Band followed by the Salina Symphony’s Symphony at Sunset. Food vendors will be available on the grounds throughout the day.
President Eisenhower joined the SAR through the Empire State Society (New York) and was member number 65450, utilizing his great-great-grandfather, John Peter Eisenhauer, as his patriot ancestor. The elder Eisenhauer supplied grain and forage to the Army at Valley Forge. He also filed one supplemental application for his great-great-great-grandfather, John Mater/Matter, who fought with Washington’s troops at the Battle of Long Island. Eisenhower’s son, John Sheldon Doud Eisenhower, and brother, Dr. Milton Stover Eisenhower, were also members of the Sons of the American Revolution.

About SAR
Membership in the SAR is open to men who can demonstrate that their ancestor provided active service in the cause of American independence either by serving in the military or in some other significant role.
Goals of the 128-year-old patriotic organization include promoting patriotism, and building respect for American history and the founding fathers.
The SAR also supports veterans in VA hospitals, the Boy Scouts and ROTC cadets. Awards and scholarships are also given to students who win orations and poster contests on patriotic topics. One of the SAR’s newest programs is to select an American History Teacher and send the winner to the Freedoms Foundation Teacher Workshop in Valley Forge, Pa.