On February 24, 1836, LtCol William Barret Travis was in command at the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas in a precarious situation. The following is a letter he dispatched on that day:
To the People of Texas & All Americans in the World-
Fellow Citizens & compatriots-
I am besieged, by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna – I have sustained a continual Bombardment & cannonade for 24 hours & have not lost a man – The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise, the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken – I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, & our flag still waves proudly from the walls – I shall never surrender or retreat. Then, I call on you in the name of Liberty, of patriotism & everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid, with all dispatch – The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily & will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days. If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible & die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country – Victory or Death.
William Barret Travis.
Lt. Col.comdt.
P. S. The Lord is on our side – When the enemy appeared in sight we had not three bushels of corn – We have since found in deserted houses 80 or 90 bushels and got into the walls 20 or 30 head of Beeves.
Travis
I grew up in Texas, and the Battle of the Alamo is one of the great stories of bravery and courage I heard consistently from when I was a child. In my mind, LtCol Travis will always have the distinguished blue uniform with dark red sash that was worn by Laurence Harvey, who portrayed Travis in the 1960 John Wayne film, “The Alamo”. I loved the part when Santa Anna’s soldiers are reading off the terms of surrender, and LtCol Travis interrupts them with a shot from the cannon. This was a real event and was described in his letter. Though he was woefully outnumbered, his message was clear, Santa Anna would not be taking the Alamo without a fight, and LtCol Travis was an obstacle that would have to be cleared.
a desperate situation
When I consider the condition of our system of education in America today, I can’t help but feel like the situation is similarly desperate. According to numbers David Barton shares in the “Biblical Citizenship in Modern America” class we host, 75% of college students would prefer America was a Socialist nation. 69% of millennials would prefer America was a Socialist nation, and if we consider all Americans, 41% would prefer America was a Socialist nation. These statistics are catastrophic for our nation and clearly communicate we are quickly losing our young folks and are well on our way to losing our nation. These numbers are true today because for decades, the other side has targeted our children with lies, often, at our public schools. Socialism is a terrible form of government that has never worked. Conversely, our Constitutional form of limited government has been the envy of the world since its inception and has provided an amazing amount of freedom for our people over our history. The tragedy is, we no longer teach our students the beauty of the incredible blessing they have received in the form of their citizenship in this great nation. Those of us who love freedom are like the relative handful of men in the Alamo as Santa Anna’s army stacks up by the thousands with each passing day.
Duty is Ours
As I have said in our classes and many blog articles, it is time for each of us to find the place God has for us to get busy in the task of reclaiming this nation. I wanted to tell you about a new place He has me working in this struggle, and let you know that I filed to run for a place on the School Board in my hometown of Waxahachie, TX. This is the duty He has given me, to submit my name, get on the ballot, and then run the best campaign that I can.
Results are God’s
I do not know whether my campaign will be successful as I seek this office, but I plan to run full speed and leave the results to God. Again, as we have often said, it is so easy to become overwhelmed and discouraged at the vast size and scope of the problem, but we only need to be focused on where God would have us. Our job is to do our duty. We do our best and leave the results to God. That is what I plan to do with this campaign, and if it is successful, then that is what I plan to do with the seat on the School Board.
i won’t make it easy
Like LtCol Travis, I sincerely feel like I need to be an obstacle the enemy will have to deal with. If the Marxists want to steal the hearts of the students of Waxahachie ISD, then they should have to deal with me first. They may laugh when they read that line… I am sure they don’t see me as much of a threat. I also doubt Santa Anna worried too much about the cannon shot. But even if we end up losing this country, there is something beautiful about a willingness to fight back, to stand up for American principles, and the desire to be “in the way” of the bad guys that seek to destroy. If we teach our children to love their nation, if we teach them about the Constitution, then the Constitution will naturally protect us against Marxism. However, if we leave them there with nobody to point out the truth and expose the lies, then the days of our dear nation are numbered, and our children will never know a freedom like the one we grew up with.
As a potential new member of the School Board, I would also like to improve the status of education in our town. I want our students to graduate, ready to go into the next phase of their lives. That just isn’t happening now. The majority of our students, in our district, are below grade level, and 4 out of 5 of the curriculum products we provide for the students are below grade level, so the situation shows no signs of improving.
just throw some money at it
The answer of our school district is to build more buildings and spend more money. They have proposed a bond for $594 Million in new debt for our community. If the voters approve this bond, the new debt will not make the situation better with our students’ education, and it will not arm them with knowledge of the Patriotic principles that formed our nation. It will simply take from our community through property taxes, and our students will still be unprepared for the next phase of their lives.
here i am
I have decided, I cannot stand by while all of this happens to the nation I love and the community I call home. I will be a voice on the Waxahachie School Board for quality education that prepares our students. I will be a voice for teaching them Patriotism and to love our country again. I will also be a voice for fiscal responsibility to the community in which we live. I will no longer say, “Sorry, there’s nothing I can do about the thousands of soldiers piling up at the wall of the Alamo”. I will now say to God, “You called for me so here I am, reporting for duty.”
If you would like to partner with me in this effort, and to stand against those who would continue to steal the youth of our nation, I would very much appreciate your support. Please pray for me as I seek to be a voice in my community. I would value your prayers very much. I am also currently raising funds for campaign signs and other materials. Please prayerfully consider helping in this effort. If that is something you’d like to do, the below QR code will take you to a link where you can send a donation of any size to my campaign. Thank you!
i shall never surrender or retreat
As we all know, in itself, the Alamo was not a victory for liberty. However, it was a place for those who loved liberty to stand up and to decide no more ground would be ceded to the enemy for free. I want to be an obstacle the enemy will have to deal with if he plans to steal the youth of my community. I shall never surrender or retreat. Will you help me? Thank you so much!
Jason this was a great blog. And I know that when you win the election that you will indeed do what you say you’ll do. And I also hope that you also make sure that the “Constitution Alive” Course is taught in the schools. That is a great course. And it will indeed teach out kids just what our country is all about and stands for. I’ve taken the 10 week course once and the 6 week course twice. And you and RaShell were the ones that taught them. And y’all do a fantastic job doing it. G-ds Speed in you effort. And I’m praying for you success in your campaign. I’m rooting for you.
Jeff, thank you so much for your encouragement! I appreciate it very much!
I am totally behind you in your efforts, Jason! You and RaShell have really opened my eyes in our Constitution Class-THANK YOU!
I will be glad to put up a yard sign when you get them!
Thank you, Christine, so much for your support! We loved having you in class! We will have yard signs very soon – will let you know! Thanks again!
Thank you so much for what you are doing. Our youth & younger generation have been seriously mislead. Truths and ideas have been hijacked. I hope that you can help recapture what American was about.
Yes maam, I will try my best. Thank you so much for your comment! Yes, I hope to be a light shining for the truth. Thank you again!
Praise God! As a Christian, you have already won the war regardless of the battles. With RaShell, a fine Christian woman, at your side you are bound to gain character and understanding that God will use for His glory. May our populace reclaim the Christian values and reverence for God, our Creator, that our forefathers knew. Because of their reverence, the best government of mankind to ever serve the people and God was established, the United States of America. May the next Waxahachie ISD School Board be a light to our next generation, and the United States of America a light to the world of God’s grace and love.
Jason, you are in my prayers. May you give God the glory as His blessings strengthen your foundation.
Glenn, your comments are always such an encouragement – thank you so much! Amen – may the Waxahachie School Board be a light for the next generation! Thank you for your comment and for your support!
Jason, I will pray for to have a successful election so you may do God’s work by encouraging and educating our youth on the true meaning of our U.S. Constitution & Bill of Rights vs. Marxism & Communism. God bless you and your family.
Thank you, Bridget, for your support and encouragement! We appreciate it so much! Thank you for your comment!
Jason, I know we are long past the school board election now, but I just read this blog post. I definitely admire you for running, and I admire you for answering the Lord’s call to try and make a difference in our school district. As a fellow Christian, I know far too well that when the Lord calls us to do something, we must answer His call. We may not always know the reason He called us, but we know we must be obedient to Him, and that you were. I know that He called me to help you with this campaign, too, which is why I did. Even though the results of the election were not what we had all hoped for, we know, as you mentioned, the results were up to Him. I know there was a reason that God called you to run, and we may never know why, but the important thing is that you answered His call. Thank you for this blog post and for the others you construct. You are also an exceptional writer! I enjoy reading your creations!
Thank you so much, Melody, for your kind words, and thank you for all your help in the campaign walking that road with us in so many ways. Your help and encouragement was such a blessing! We ran the best campaign we could, and the plan all along was to leave the results to Him. He chose not to put me in that position, so I suppose He has a different place for me to be used in this fight to save our country. It was such a close race – I always say at least they knew there was a fight! We will keep leading classes and working to share the materials on our Constitution and form of government until He shows us where the next fight is He has for us! Thank you again!
Thank you for being willing to “stand in the gap”. I read through the school website and my heart is so sad at student achievement. You are exactly correct no amount of money is going to fix a broken educational system. My teaching career has been in the public sector because that is where God called me. This is another of your well-articulated articles. Thank you 😊
Thank you for your kind words! We felt God would have us to run, so we ran the best race we could and left the results to Him. Yes, it is discouraging to see how content our community is with a broken system that is teaching students to hate their country. But, we leave the results to God and look for the places where He would have us to work and be plugged in. At least we will keep doing classes! 🙂 Thank you again for your comment!
It is so interesting to hear many young Americans preference for Socialism. Especially as they exercise their rights and live out their freedoms in their daily life. However, when one does not need to reason and can just jump on the band wagon along the way it becomes an easy decision. Even living the consequence in the unrest and anger is also easy. Just point and blame “them” and stay on the bandwagon.
However, in working with a few of the moms at a school board I found that they are perplexed when one takes the Offensive stand. The board, while acting “powerful” actually works in fear. They control with anger and speak “at” all the confronts them to “exercise” the power they believe they have. They cannot speak with any reasoning or understanding, One speaks the rest rally along. When approached with facts, law and defined solution to the proposal presented, they mumble and stumble. I found reasoning and accountability is not their strong suit. In knowing where you stand I know “All Is Well” for you. He’s put you there and His plan will be done. Remember, if you walk in truth the Lord is with you. The battle is HIS. While you may at times feel you are not making an impact. Like John Quincy Adams, keep persevering. Others will see, learn and will change. It will be done. The Lords timing is always perfect.
Congratulations!
Thank you for your comment and your encouraging words. I did not win my election, but the John Quincy Adams quote you mentioned was our slogan for the campaign, “Duty is ours, results are God’s”. We ran the best campaign we knew how to do, and just told God if He wanted us there, He would have to put us there. We got over 30% in a race with 3 candidates, and nobody had 40%. So, we feel like it went well, and gave the opportunity for me to sound the alarm about Marxism stealing our children. Your point is still the same – the battle is His! Thank you for your comment.