SUNDAY, AUGUST 7, 2011 | THE FREDERICK NEWS-POST | C-3

HORIZON

South Mountain throughoutthe Civil War.

Miller, dressed in anauthentic Union soldier’s uni-

form, wasn’t worriedabout darken-

ing skiesd u r -

i n g

t h ep r o -

gram. “Icarry a pon-

cho and a gum blanket at alltimes, so it’s historically cor-rect,” he said. Like the pon-cho, the gum blanket is madeof rubber-backed sheets offabric. If a tent wasn’t avail-able, the blanket provided asoldier with a simple shelter.

Dudrow, whose ancestorslived in Frederick Countyand fought in the Civil War,often brings his thorough-bred horse, Eve, when hetalks about the role of caval-ry troops along South Moun-tain. He dresses the part of acavalry soldier, and outfitshis horse with a McClellansaddle, designed by GeorgeB. McClellan and used byCivil War soldiers.

“She stands still for hoursand lets the kids pet her,”

Dudrow said. It’s a way to getkids interested in the battleand introduce them to histor-ical details. “Everything I useis authentic. I don’t scrimpon that.”

Three cavalries, headed byJudson Kilpatrick and JohnBuford — both Union generals— and Confederate Gen. J.E.B.Stuart, tangled at SouthMountain in July 1863, afterthe conflict at Gettysburg.Col. George A. Custer, whowould later lose his life bat-tling the Plains Indians, waspart of the skirmish. TheUnion cavalries were trying toget a little rest and replenishtheir rations when Stuartattacked.

The fighting ended in adraw, Miller said. At the sametime, Union infantry soldierswere making their waythrough what today is Gam-brill State Park, on the north-west edge of Frederick.

This Friday’s programwill focus on West Virginiatroops that occupied SouthMountain near Wolfsville.During the weekend of Aug.20, living historians will por-tray Confederate infantry-men from Brig. Gen. SamuelGarland’s brigade. Thedemonstration will focus onsoldiers’ everyday activitieswhile they fought alongSouth Mountain.

“A half-hour programtakes about four hours worthof research,” Miller said.

Some of the programsincorporate the area’s recre-ational appeal. HikingThrough History takes partic-ipants along the AppalachianTrail and adjacent fields,

where much of the Battle ofSouth Mountain was foughton Sept. 14, 1862. This battleengaged Union and Confeder-ate troops three days beforethey would meet again at theBattle of Antietam.

“The Civil War soldierswere 19th-century backpack-ers,” Miller said. “Many hik-ers have no interest in CivilWar history, but they canidentify with that.”

“We have a real strongthree-way partnership,” saidLiz Shatto, director of theHeart of the Civil War Her-itage Area, which encom-passes Civil War tourism inFrederick, Washington andCarroll counties. Her organi-zation helped South Moun-tain State Battlefield get agrant to hire two seasonalinterpreters, who augment

the rangers’ programs.Part of a $34,000 state-

federal matching grant paidthe interpreters’ wages.

“The fact that we are ableto add interpretive staff makesit possible for them to delivermore,” she said. “Interest inthe Maryland Campaign isincreasing. We are already see-ing an increase in visitors atour sites.”

What Miller is doing isexplaining the region’sdiverse Civil War history totourists, which may result inrepeat visits.

“If you’re one of thosefolks who has been to Anti-etam before, you’ve got a rea-son to come back,” she said.“The state of Maryland rec-ognizes that heritagetourism is a return on stateinvestment.”

(Continued from C-1)

Civil War

“South Mountain andCatoctin MountainWERE SOME OFTHE ROUGHESTTERRAIN OF THEWAR.JOHN MILLERSouth Mountain State Battlefield

CIVIL WAR PROGRAMS IN THE PARK

■■ Aug. 12 — Friday AfternoonLiving History program, noonto 4 p.m.,Washington Monu-ment State Park, 6620 Zittlestown Road, Middletown.Focuses on West Virginia’soccupation of South Moun-tain near Wolfsville.

■■ Aug. 20-21 — Garland’sBrigade Weekend,WashingtonMonument State Park. Livinghistorians portray Confederateinfantrymen from Brig. Gen.Samuel Garland’s brigade,discuss how Civil War soldierslived and fought, and the roleof Garland’s Brigade at South

Mountain. A medical pro-gram is also planned.

■■ Aug. 26 — Hiking ThroughHistory — Battle of Fox’s Gap,1 p.m., meet at Fox’s Gapparking lot off Reno Monu-ment Road. Free.

■■ Sept. 9 — Live and LearnExperience, noon, Fort Neces-sity Pavilion,Washington Mon-ument State Park. SouthMountain State Battlefieldstaff marks 149th anniversaryof the Battle of South Moun-tain (Sept. 14, 1862). Seewhat a soldier ate, wore andcarried.

Call South Mountain State Battlefield, 301-432-8065, fordetails. Unless noted, entrance fee is $2 to $3 per vehicle.

Deoaguila’s sister, a veterinarian, had an animat-ed conversation with Dudrowabout the role of horses andmules in the war. While650,000 soldiers were killed,1.5 million horses and mulesdied in the war.

Miller and Dudrow saidAustralian, English, Ger-man and Japanese touristsoften make Civil War pil-grimages.

Rick and Kathy Kaese-

bler, who live near Spring-field, Ill., stopped at Anti-etam before heading to Vir-ginia’s Shenandoah Valley.They visited the battlefieldsof the South last year. KathyKaesebler said Antietam ispresented well, and sheliked the farm fields thatmake up much of the battle-field. She and her husbandlive on a farm.

History buffs Curt Dis-rud and his son, Quinn,came from Oconomowoc,Wis. They were in Baltimore

for a lacrosse tournamentand had a free day. “This isthe first Civil War battle-field we’ve visited,” CurtDisrud said.

While neither Miller norDudrow has fought in a war,Miller said both have spentmany years doing living his-tory and re-enactments.

“We’ve camped out andbeen cold and wet,” he said.

Miller said his goal of tak-ing the stories of the CivilWar to tourists has beenenhanced because of a part-

nership between SouthMountain State Battlefieldand Antietam National Bat-tlefield. Both entities benefitfrom joint programs, becausemany Civil War tourists liketo spend several days visitingregional battlefields.

Gettysburg National Mil-itary Park, South Mountainand Antietam are all withineasy driving distance of oneanother, Miller said, and vis-itors can spend several daysfollowing the stories of thelocal battles.

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Tourism

Courtesy photo

Christine Briggs and Eddie Casinover won Musket Ridge Golf Club’s Love & Liberty wedding giveaway. They plan to get married Sept. 11 in the Myersville club’s Catoctin Hall.

By KENDAL ENZ

News-Post Staffkenz@fredericknewspost.com

Army veteran Eddie Casi-nover and his fiancée, Chris-tine Briggs, won MusketRidge Golf Club’s Love & Lib-erty wedding giveaway.

Casinover, 29, and Briggs,30, of Pasadena, Md., plan towed Sept. 11 at MusketRidge’s Catoctin Hall inMyersville. The hall has wonWeddingWire Newlyweds’Bride’s Choice Award forthree consecutive years.

“When I found out we hadwon the wedding giveaway, Iwas surprised ... shocked wasmore like it, because I wasn'teven aware that Eddie hadput in the submission for it,”Briggs said. The wedding

giveaway was created tohonor the bravery of the mili-tary and first responders onthe 10th anniversary of theSept. 11, 2001, terroristattacks.

Recognizing those whoserve in the military and whowork as first responders “justfelt right,” said Bonnie Swan-son, event sales manager atMusket Ridge.

To enter the contest, Casi-nover answered questionsabout his accomplishments inthe military and why hethought he deserved to win.

“His story was the mostcompelling of the entries,”Swanson said.

Casinover served in theArmy for eight years anddeployed to the Middle Eastwith the 101st Airborne Divi-

sion. Now, as a service-disabled veteran, he works forthe Department of Defense inWashington.

Briggs is a financial ana-lyst at Reliable Churchill, awine and spirits distributioncompany. She is also takingclasses at Anne Arundel Com-munity College.

Before winning the Love &Liberty wedding giveaway,Casinover and Briggs plannedto be married by a justice ofthe peace.

“Weddings are atrocious— how much they cost,” Casi-nover said. “I couldn’t affordto give (Christine) the lavishwedding she deserved.”

When he received a phonecall announcing he had wonthe giveaway, Casinover saidhe was shocked. And he was-

n’t sure if he could accept thewedding because of the sensi-tive nature of his job with theDefense Department.

“I was stressing out Imight not be able to do it,”Casinover said. But his supe-riors gave him the go-ahead.

Musket Ridge will supplythe couple and their 150guests with all the food andnonalcoholic beverages.

Other businesses — includ-ing Holly Heider ChappleFlowers, Aaren King of MADEMakeup and officiant NormanRoss — have donated theirservices for the wedding.

“Things like this do nothappen every day, and I canspeak for the both of us that(Eddie and I) feel very fortu-nate and blessed we were cho-sen,” Briggs said.

Army veteran wins Musket Ridge wedding

FOR THE FREDERICK NEWS-POST

The National Museum ofCivil War Medicine’s month-ly lecture series will contin-ue from 11 a.m. to noon Sat-urday in the Delaplaine-Randall Room at the muse-um, 48 E. Patrick St., Freder-ick.

Dr. William Campbell,the museum’s docent and anassistant professor and theRN coordinator at SalisburyUniversity in Salisbury, isslated to deliver the lecture“Fort Delaware: Water,Waste and Healthcare.” Hewill discuss water issues andthe effect they had on FortDelaware.

On Sept. 10, Mark Quat-trock is slated to deliver thelecture “Confederate Med-ical Service.” Quattrock is along-standing NMCWM vol-unteer docent and Civil Warmedical historian.

He will share the storyof the 9,000 surgeons andassistant surgeons whoserved the ConfederateStates; the organizationalstructure and field systemadopted by the Confederate

Medical Service, which isaccredited to Dr. HunterHolmes McGuire; and theaccomplishments of otherkey Confederate medicalpersonnel and the chal-lenges they overcame toobtain and distribute med-ical supplies.

The museum admissionprice includes the programs.

Museum plans seriesof Civil War lectures

DETAILS■■ For more information about

the lectures, call the NationalMuseum of Civil War Medi-cine at 301-695-1864 orvisit www.civilwarmed.org.

By KENDAL ENZ

News-Post Staffkenz@fredericknewspost.com

Michael Boyd believes inthe power of speech.

“When you overcomeyour fear and master publicspeaking skills, you findopportunities that havebeen there all along,” hesaid.

That’s why he recentlyfounded The Center forEmpowered Communica-tion, a program that offerspublic speaking workshopsto high school and middleschool students.

“I want to leave a legacyof students who have mas-tered speaking behind me,”Boyd said.

According to Boyd, thosewith strong communicationskills are more likely to suc-ceed in all areas of life.

“I think people whoaspire to leadership are thepeople who have above-aver-age communication skills,”he said.

During CEC workshops,which begin this fall, Boydwill assess the strengths andweaknesses of each student,and then work on buildingtheir strengths.

“When students do well,it reassures me that thefuture is in good hands,” hesaid.

Boyd has been a speechand communication coachfor more than 15 years. Hisinterest in public speakingbegan when he worked forPlamondon Enterprises, afranchisee of Marriott Inter-national. As vice presidentof the company, he believedit was important to havesolid public speaking skills.

“Part of my role as aleader was to speak onbehalf of those who did not

have a voice,” he said.Consequently, Boyd

joined Toastmasters Inter-national, a nonprofit com-munication and leadershiptraining organization, in1989. He found the organiza-tion rewarding.

“I’m in it for life,” he said. He said a few simple

tricks can help improve pub-lic speaking skills.

“Rehearsal is key,” hesaid.

To combat nervousness,Boyd suggests writing thespeech out and then readingit in front of a mirror.

“Know your purpose ...and practice, practice, prac-tice,” he said.

When he’s not workingas an adjunct professor atFrederick Community Col-lege or running his consult-ing firm, MBAssociates,Boyd volunteers at the Fred-erick County Career andTechnology Center, teach-ing high school studentscommunications skills.

In May, Boyd was the runner-up in the District 18(Maryland, Delaware andnortheastern Virginia)Toastmaster Internationalspeech contest.

His past achievementsinclude receiving the Distin-guished Toastmaster certifi-cation, the highest awardToastmasters Internationaloffers.

He also won the Toast-masters InternationalRegion VII HumorousSpeech Championship in2004.

AT A GLANCE■■ Find more about The Center

for Empowered Communica-tion at www.empoweredcommunicators.com or call301-524-0240.

Staff photo by Adam Fried

Michael Boyd, founder of The Center for Empowered Communication in Frederick, wants to empower studentsthrough speech.

Program helpsstudents masterpublic speaking