The James Wood Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution donated a set of the original 43 “Dear America” books to Chelsea Nutter’s fourth grade classroom library at Neale School on Friday, Oct. 17. (Photo Provided)

Staff Report

VIENNA — A local historical group recently donated a number of history-themed books to the fourth grade at Neale School in Vienna.

The James Wood Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution participated in the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution’s Day of Service.

The Day of Service is held on or around Oct. 11, celebrating the Daughters of the American Revolution’s founding in 1890 with community service projects.

DAR members participate in activities like historic preservation, education, and community outreach, such as packing school supplies or planting flowers, to embody the organization’s founding principles of service, patriotism, and education. The event highlights DAR’s ongoing commitment to volunteerism, with members contributing millions of hours of service each year.

The James Wood Chapter DAR members held a special presentation of the “Dear America” series of books to Chelsea Nutter’s fourth grade classroom library at Neale School on Friday, Oct. 17.

“This is a heartwarming initiative, and we truly believe these books will spark a love for learning and American History in so many young minds,” said James Wood Chapter Regent Susan Nutter who is Chelsea’s mother.

“Dear America” is a series of historical fiction novels for children published by Scholastic starting in 1996. The “Dear America” book series is generally recommended for ages 8-14, which corresponds to third through ninth grades for readers.

There are 43 books in the original “Dear America” series, which features the fictional diaries of girls during significant periods of American history. The series began in 1996 and each book aims to make history more engaging and relevant for readers by using a diary format to tell a story, organizers said.

The group was able to donate the entire original run of 43 books to the class, said Dina Braniff of the DAR. The group had to do some work to track down one book, but they wanted to be able to give a complete set of the original run.

“We wanted to ensure we had every one of them,” she said. “We gave the school a complete set of the original 43.”

Braniff said the books were well received by the class.

“We passed around the books and the students would trade them around when they wanted to look at another book,” she said. “The kids were really excited about the books.”

The DAR representatives explained to the students that 2026 will mark the nation’s 250th anniversary.

“There will be all kinds of celebrations and a lot of these stories are really relevant to our nation’s history,” Braniff said.