Virginia CCC Day

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Member Sam Solloway said, "I have an idea. Let's have a CCC day in Virginia." ...and, so it started.

Thanks to the idea of CCC alumni, Sam Solloway of Petersburg, VA, Virginia now has the CCC Member Appreciation Day. Passed by the Virginia General Assembly in 2006, March 31 will annually mark the contribution of CCC alumni to the natural resources and outdoor recreational system.

For many years Sam and his fellow alumni met at the CCC Museum at Pocahontas State Park near Chester, VA. Sam passed away in June of 2006, but his legacy to CCC heritage will live on forever in his idea to have a Virginia CCC day of recognition. Also see article in the Virginia DCR - Grassroots Newsletter July 2006

"Partnerships make it happen"

Virginia CCC Member Appreciation Day - March 31

Senate Joint Resolution 85 - Unanimously supported

The CCC Legacy Foundation is proud to work in partnership with Virginia residents who are members of the National Association of CCC Alumni (NACCCA) and the Virginia legislature to foster State wide recognition of CCC projects. Virginia State Senator Mark Obenshain, (R-District 26) of Harrisonburg, made the commitment to introduce the resolution and through unanimous support it is now a reality.

Why March 31?

1933 was a year marked by economic depression, 25% unemployment, soup lines, drought, dust bowls and general moral decay. As America slipped into some of its darkest times, newly elected President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was determined to put men to work.

Inaugurated on March 4, Roosevelt Acted quickly and on March 21, President Roosevelt sent a message to the 73^rd Congress:

“I propose to create a civilian conservation corps to be used in simple work, not interfering with normal employment, and confining itself to forestry, the prevention of soil erosion, flood control and similar projects. More important, however, than material gains, will be the moral and spiritual value of such work.”

Through a vigilant and creative effort, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Interior, War, Labor and the Judge Advocate General crafted legislation that would change the face of natural resource conservation methods to this day.

Ten days later on March 31, 1933 , FDR signed the Emergency Conservation Work legislation that created the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Long thought to be the most successful of the New Deal programs, it leaves us a legacy that created the infrastructure of our nation’s outdoor recreational system and the very tenants of modern conservation that are still used today.

A "New Deal" had begun.

For more information visit our Camp School / Elementary page.

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The content on this website is reconstructed to reflect organizational changes associated between the merger of NACCCA and the Camp Roosevelt Legacy Foundation.

Civilian Conservation Corps Legacy - P.O. Box 341 -- Edinburg, VA 22824 -- Phone: 540-984-8735 - Send mail to ccc@ccclegacy.org with questions or comments about this web site.