Charlottesville Kiwanians Visited by President James Monroe

by Jim Hart

Charlottesville Kiwanians and their guests were treated to what many called the most outstanding program they had ever experienced while in Kiwanis. Through the persistent efforts of Interim Chair of the Program Committee, past Kiwanis president Philip Day, President James Monroe, fifth president of the United States, and long-time Albemarle County resident, visited the club at its regular meeting at the Elks Lodge on Monday evening, August 15. President Monroe, often called the last of America's Founding Fathers, participated with Club President Jim Hart in the opening of the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance, the patriotic song, and the invocation. After dinner, President Monroe held the audience spell-bound with a free-wheeling description of his wide-ranging experiences not only in Charlottesville as a friend and neighbor of Thomas Jefferson, but in Williamsburg as a student at William & Mary, as a member of the Continental Congress, and later a member of the United States Congress, as a military leader in the Revolutionary War alongside General George Washington, and as a United States emissary in London and also in Paris, where he successfully negotiated the conclusion of the talks leading to the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France. Kiwanians were dazzled by how well the President's wisdom and political acuity has fared after nearly 200 years. Mr. Monroe nimbly fielded numerous questions from the audience and pointed out, to our delight, that volunteer service groups such as Kiwanis are absolutely essential for the preservation of our democracy and for the continued success of the great experiment that is the United States of America. President Monroe graciously thanked us for our hospitality and promised to return the favor were we to visit his estate called Ash Lawn-Highland, located just down the road from Jefferson's Monticello.


Pictured are two presidents named James: James Hart and James Monroe.