DAR Member with Native American Heritage Shares Her Family’s Story

An intricate American ancestry was the subject of the Marco DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) meeting March 17th at the Hideaway Beach Club.

Melbourne Florida Chapter member Maryann Wyrick Esenwein entitled her power point talk, “Prairie Tales: An Intimate Portrait of an Osage and Quapaw Family.” She said, “It’s the story of the Osage and Quapaw tribes fight for survival on the ever-changing American landscape as told through the oral traditions of my family.”

Maryann is Osage and Quapaw. She grew up on the Osage Indian Reservation in Oklahoma with her mixed Osage, Quapaw and white family. She is a Mayflower Descendant and a fifth generation DAR member who has held many state level DAR offices.

Maryann told her fellow DAR members “When my white mother married my Osage and Quapaw father, many of my mother's friends rejected her. The DAR, on the other hand, welcomed her warmly.”

She went on to explain, “I was taught the stories of my people on the laps of my elders. I would like to acknowledge Principal Chief Sylvester of the Osage Nation. He made it his life’s mission to care for the physical, mental, and spiritual health of generations of Osages, especially my generation. I tell our stories in his and all my elders’ honor.”

DAR is a service organization with 180,000 members in three-thousand chapters worldwide. Members are women eighteen years or older, regardless of race, religion or ethnic background, who can prove lineal descent from a patriot in the American Revolution.

Monthly DAR meetings are at 10:30 AM on the third Thursday of each month, followed by lunch. Members also meet casually between meetings, just for friendship and fun. The chapter has 75 members and welcomes visitors from other chapters. Please contact Ellen Camm at ellencammg@gmail.com, 317-372-1174.