A project for future display of banners at Wechsler School and use as a traveling exhibit for schools and local observances has been completed.

The retractable banners, titled “Intersection of Education/Civil Rights in the Struggle for Equal Rights in Meridian features one with education sites and the other with Civil Rights sites. According to Wechsler Foundation President Edward Lynch, the displays will be placed at Wechsler School, the first brick school for African Americans built with public funds, once the renovation of the 1951 building is completed. They also will be used as traveling exhibits, as well as be available for school programs and observances for Black History Month, Memorial Day, Veterans Day and Independence Day.

“We are all one community and Wechsler has been significant in the lives of so many people in this community,” Lynch said. “I’m just hoping that people will just see the impact of these major African-American icons, which have not only served the African-American community, but have served  the community at large over the years.”

In 2019, Wechsler Foundation was awarded a $2,700 grant by the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) which Wechsler had to match. Funding for this project was made possible through a sponsorship from Pushmataha Chapter, Mississippi State Society Daughters of the American Revolution (MSSDAR) National Society Daughters of the American Revolution.  

“The creation of mobile panels will be used as an educational tool to carry the history of Meridian’s African-American education, and the struggle for civil rights to an intergenerational audience in Meridian and across the state,” Kaye Wolfe of the Pushmataha Chapter said. “The goal of this project is to promote community pride and leadership through education. Pushmataha Chapter endorses this application and its important message.”

The DAR grants program was started in 2010. Funding is awarded to support projects in local communities that promote the organization’s mission areas of historic preservation, education and patriotism.  

The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in 1890 to promote patriotism, preserve American history, and support better education for our nation’s children. Its members are descended from the patriots who won American independence during the Revolutionary War. With more than 185,000 members in 3,000 chapters worldwide, DAR is one of the world’s largest and most active service organizations.

For more information about the retractable banners or Wechsler School, contact Edward Lynch at (601) 513-8621 or visit wechslerfoundation.com

For more about applying for a Special Projects Grant from DAR, visit www.dar.org/grants