Secretary Dot
CWM Collection
All Civil War enthusiasts have a story to tell when asked when, how, or why they became interested in the history of the conflict. Mine dates to my very early years. As a kid, my mother, Dorothy (“Dot” to all who knew her), a former high school English teacher and voracious reader, would permit my sister and me to delay, or sometimes avoid, performing assigned household tasks if we instead picked up a book. It was during one such chore-dodging occasion that I grabbed a recently gifted copy of Barbara Cary’s Meet Abraham Lincoln (1965), a kids-level overview of the Civil War as told through the story of the sixteenth president. I recall sprawling out on the family room floor, the book opened in front of me, and being drawn in by the tale—and the magnificent illustrations by Jack Davis. Just like that, I was hooked.
Once that interest sparked, Mom was steadfast in her support of it; looking back, I think the educator in her could sense the beginnings of something deeper than a passing attraction taking hold in her boy. In the years that followed, there were trips to battlefield parks; hours spent together researching the family’s Civil War connections in the local historical society; and books—always more books—given on birthdays, holidays, or “just because.”
Mom’s encouragement, support, and eternal optimism were instrumental in the birth and growth of the Monitor. She sat with me at her kitchen table in 2011, surrounded by magazine paper samples, to help me decide which we should use. (I went with her favorite.) She read every issue cover to cover, usually in a single sitting, afterward letting me know which pieces she enjoyed most—and which she “could have lived without.” She provided unvarnished feedback on myriad editorial ideas and cover layouts. And, from day one, she served as the company’s bookkeeper, her superior penmanship and accounting skills—and willingness to work for free—making her perfectly suited for the job. Whenever I came to her requesting the services of “Secretary Dot,” she knew to grab her pen and calculator.
In May, Mom passed away from heart failure, a condition she had battled with her characteristic hopefulness for years. Her death has left a hole in the hearts of those who loved her. We will go on, as will the Monitor, with memories of her boundless kindness and generosity firmly in mind, much better for the privilege of having had her in our lives.
