Diana Meeting Martha and George at DAR State Conference 2023

Diana Starr joined the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) only two years ago, and she is now preparing to become the Regent for the local Point Vicente chapter in June.

Years ago, she did not expect to end up in this position. In fact, she was dedicated to her tech support job at a company owned by a Microsoft billionaire. But when she had her first child at 34, she began to reanalyze her life.

“It wasn’t until they laid off about 125 people in the technology group and I was left to pick up laptops like tombstones that I realized career wasn’t everything,” Starr says. “Luckily my husband agreed that staying home with our children would be the best thing for all of us.”

She made the jump from careerwoman to stay-at-home mother and “career volunteer.” She volunteered in schools, in grass-roots activist projects like Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, worked in web design and book publishing on the side and even did some substitute teaching along the way. As her kids grew up and volunteer opportunities disappeared during the COVID-19 pandemic, she began to look for a new way to get involved in the community.

“Once women become mothers and decide they’re going to step out of the workplace, they lose all of that opportunity to be that individual,” Starr says. “And this was an excellent opportunity”

Diana and Alta receiving America 250 Awards from the Sons of the American Revolution Harbor Chapter

At her sister’s recommendation, Starr decided to check out the local DAR chapter, even though she knew very little about the organization. In a Zoom meeting with Point Vicente, Regent Alta Graham introduced her and said, “Now ladies, we need to woo her!” It was at that moment Diana knew she had found a tribe. She found a group of ladies committed to something positive: to serving the community and promoting patriotism, education and historic preservation. She was in.

Her sister had already traced their genealogy back to someone who supported the American Revolution cause, which is a requirement for all DAR members. As she learned more about the history of the organization, she found it more and more fascinating. The organization launched in 1890 when women were turned away from joining the Sons of the American Revolution.

“A hundred and thirty-odd years ago, these ladies got together and decided they would do bigger and better, and of course they did,” she says. “I recently did a member’s course class that discussed “Women of Resilience” and a story about how the DAR provided relief during World War I. The video goes into detail of all these amazing women’s efforts and huge financial contributions but the one story that got me was how they “re-chickenized” France when their food supply was in serious jeopardy. I guffawed at the anecdote, but really, how amazing is that?” The video is worth a watch!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QJ9tP4SPb8

Starr and her chapter try to make an impact in the community. For example, they volunteer in local schools to promote education, host local essay and art contests for students, and provide scholarships for graduating teens. For the last year and a half, Starr has worked on public relations and the chapter newsletter for the group and has worked closely with Regent, Alta Graham, to learn the ropes to become Regent in the summer.

“It has been a really nice opportunity to use my technical skills,” Starr says. “I started taking over the newsletter almost immediately, using my technical skills, my writing skills, my creative skills. And it’s given me that outlet and that group of people that I think everybody needs if you’re not in a work environment.”

Recently, Starr helped plan an event celebrating 250 years of America and its Navy on the Battleship IOWA in San Pedro. She looks forward to the next couple years of continuing to look for ways to promote patriotism, historical preservation, and education, by organizing DAR events like their monthly meetings, field trips and book club.

“It’s a completely non-political, non-partisan organization that is purely for service to America,” Starr says, “This is a group of really smart and capable women.”

For Starr, the value of the organization always ties back to serving America and ensuring the American spirit lives on.

“Without this perspective, this appreciation of what we have in our country — which is unique from any other country in the world — without some group [being] the cheerleaders of America, it will become lost,” Starr says.

https://pointvicente.californiadar.org/

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