Wednesday, September 25, 2002

The Augustin Clayton Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, in partnership with the Clayton, Fayette, and Henry County boards of education promoted Constitution Week observance Sept. 17 - Sept. 23. The Clayton, Fayette, and Henry County governments have presented their school systems with a proclamation for each school in the system.

Students throughout these counties participated in the celebration with activities under the leadership of their coordinators of social studies.

In Clayton County all students were shown a tape of the presentation and students of fine arts displayed their artwork in relation to Constitution Week. Each location in each county displayed colored note cards from some of their elementary students that reminded visitors to join other American patriots to ring a bell at 4 p.m., Sept. 17, the exact time of the signing of the Constitution in 1787.

Why is this celebration so important? The Constitution of the United States of America is the safeguard of all our liberties, the champion of our freedoms. The purposes of the observation and celebration are (1) to emphasize the responsibility of protecting and defending the Constitution and of preserving it for posterity, (2) to understand that the Constitution is our great heritage and the foundation of our lives, and (3) to study the historical events that occurred during September 1787.

Do our children realize the importance of the Constitution? It is our hope that they will learn something about our Constitution from these activities and be better informed about the inheritance that their forefathers left them, an inheritance like no other.

Phyllis Lawson

Chairman, Constitution Week

Augustin Clayton Chapter