Page 19 - Sojourner Newsletter-WINTER 2021-2022

Vol. 9 Iss. 1 19

Members present for and conducting the first Encampment to induct members into the Jimmy Doolittle
Camp, Heroes of ’76 in the hall of Flags at the Fort Meade Cavalry Museum at Fort Meade, SD on Veterans
Day, November 11,2021. Pictured (L-r): George McMullin, Charlie Odorrizi, Hugh Nels, Harold Walker, Jef-
fery Van Curen, Greg Dominguez, Michael Rowan, Recruits: Dave Meltz, Bruce Crisman, Bob Tesch

JOE FOSS CAMP (Chattanooga #540). A cold front passed through overnight bringing a cool, dry morn-
ing to the valley below Lookout Mountain. The Heroes of Joe Foss Camp awoke to the smell of sausage bis-
cuits and coffee in their camp at the lodge down the road from John Brown’s Tavern and the ferry across the
river. They were joined by Brother Buzz Grimes, the Representative from the Western Region of Tennessee
from up along the border with Cantuckee, together with Brother James Perkins, the Adjutant from Hermitage
Camp near Fort Nashville to discuss the upcoming campaign in Middle Tennessee.

There was a ruckus outside the doors of the camp, which the Guard reported as being caused by a scraggly
old mountain man who was seeking admission to the Camp. He reported that he had been sent orders to report
to the camp back in August but failed to produce them when questioned. He said his name was Brother Wade
Hinson who was unable to produce proof of his Masonic connections. He said they were on his “cell phone”
but no one in the Camp had ever heard of such a thing. He required several trips into the “D” to refresh his
failing memory during his examination. After an extensive questioning by the Camp Commander, the Heroes
present, with some reservations, decided to allow him to join their ranks.
A bright sun and temperatures in the low 60s greeted the Heroes as they emerged from their Camp to return
to their farms to the prepare for the fall harvest. With their numbers finally increasing, the members of the
Camp were looking forward to adding more recruits to their ranks after such a long spell of inactivity due to
the sickness that had spread throughout the region during the past year and a half.