By Laura DeRoo

Blue Star Mothers of America (BSMA) is a nonprofit veteran service organization that supports our Troops, our Veterans, and the families of each. BSMA started in Flint, Michigan on February 1, 1942. Laura will be sharing the history, who is eligible to join and how you can help.

Laura is married and mother of five children. Her only son was killed in combat in Iraq, August 20, 2006. Having witnessed the fear and anxiety Gabriel’s death triggered in local military moms, Laura was led to start a local chapter of Blue Star Mothers of America Inc. In 2011 she started a local Chapter of America Gold Star Mothers and is currently the President of her Chapter and of the Department of Michigan Chapter.

By John N. Low, JD, Ph.D.

Professor Low will share the story of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi and their influence on southwest Michigan. From ancient times to the present and future, the Pokagon Potawatomi have always relied on the power of storytelling to sustain themselves and their community.

John N. Low received his Ph.D. in American Culture at the University of Michigan and is an enrolled citizen of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. He is also the recipient of a graduate certificate in Museum Studies and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Michigan. He is a retired Professor from Ohio State University and former Director of the Newark Earthworks Center.

By Steven D Rigoni

Steven will present a first-person impression of James Henry Wheaton, a local soldier who served in the 1st Michigan Infantry during the Civil War. Steve’s research for this presentation is drawn from over 70 letters sent home by Wheaton, as well as period newspapers and other historical records.

Steven is a historian with a wide range of interests from the Civil War, WWI and WWII aviation, and all Local SW Michigan history. He is particularly interested in collecting, researching, and constructing educational and informative displays of Michigan Civil War Images and Letters, and WWII Drone Engines.