Recently more than 20 employees from Gables Residential participated in the Gettysburg Foundation’s leadership training program, “In the Footsteps of Leaders,” at Gettysburg National Military Park. This is the fifth year that Gables sent a team to Gettysburg as part of the Gables Leadership Institute, which provides high-performing employees with a comprehensive leadership training program at various locations across the country.

Facilitated by Dr. Jeffrey Kudisch, a Clinical Full Professor at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, and led by Sue Boardman, Director of the Gettysburg Foundation’s Executive Leadership Program, participants were treated to an immersive guided tour of the battlefield exploring the leadership styles of various personalities that played critical roles at the Battle of Gettysburg.

According to Philip Altschuler, Senior VP of Human Resources at Gables Residential, a day on the battlefield with Sue Boardman is worth many days in the classroom. “Walking in the footsteps of these battlefield commanders, and studying their decisions from the very location where they made them, provides a unique perspective for Gables associates to learn how leadership styles can affect team performance and provides an unparalleled opportunity to mentally prepare for future business challenges.”

Gettysburg Foundation thanks Gables Residential for five years of leadership training here at Gettysburg!

The Gettysburg Foundation, in partnership with the Journey Through Hallowed Ground, is pleased to announce that we are celebrating the 25^th Anniversary of the release of the iconic movie Gettysburg with Director Ron Maxwell and other special guests with an exclusive screening at the Majestic Theater in downtown Gettysburg on October 13. Considered by many to be the greatest war movie, it clocks in as the longest American film ever made. It notably featured thousands of re-enactors who joined Ted Turner in the climatic Pickett’s Charge scene filmed right here at Gettysburg. 

Attendees are welcome to attend a Q&A session with the Director and special guests beginning at 5:00 pm before the film starts at 6:00 pm. 

Ron Maxwell has expressed his gratitude for all the preservation efforts made on the Battlefield over the past 25 years thanks largely to the efforts of the Friends of Gettysburg. During the Q&A, he will explore how these preservation efforts would have changed his filming perspective for the better, not having to navigate around modern intrusions like power lines, towers, and hotels. Along with special guests, he’ll also share his many insights into the making of this classic film.

The Gettysburg Foundation was pleased to welcome the officers and crew of the USS Gettysburg (CG 64) to Gettysburg National Park this past month. As part of the visit, the group toured the museum, took a guided tour of the battlefield, and helped maintain headstones in the Soldiers’ National Cemetery. Along with several other activities with the borough of Gettysburg, Master Chief Fire Controlman Christopher Allen reenlisted at the Gettysburg Foundation’s Gettysburg Lincoln Railroad Station.

The ship's commanding officer, Captain Corey Keniston, and Lieutenant Junior Grade Jeff Bortz, the ship's navigator, presented the Foundation with a Navy Jack that will be flown over various sites of the battlefield and returned to the USS Gettysburg to be taken to sea when the ship returns to service in 2019 after a modernization program.

Members of the crew will return to Gettysburg in July to participate in the Battlefield Anniversary Celebration and the Gettysburg Foundation plans to offer a special tour of the USS Gettysburg in Norfolk this fall – stay tuned for more information!

Gettysburg National Military Park and the Gettysburg Foundation have teamed up to honor the history of the Emancipation Proclamation by exhibiting a copy personally signed by President Abraham Lincoln. One of three color lithographic broadsides, this was given directly to Lincoln by David Williams Cheesman, and is known as the Cheesman copy.

The Emancipation Proclamation is on loan from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and will be on display from May 17-November 25, 2018 in the Gettysburg Museum of the American Civil War on the grounds of the Museum and Visitor Center.

Recently more than 30 business leaders joined the Pennsylvania Chamber Educational Foundation over two days for the Gettysburg Foundation’s leadership training program, “In the Footsteps of Leaders,” at Gettysburg National Military Park. This is the third year that the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Technology facilitated such a training program through the Pennsylvania Chamber’s Educational Foundation, and we are grateful for the continued partnership.

Along with an overview of the battle and its aftermath, a packed curriculum covered 16 key battlefield lessons ranging from communication and accountability, to empathy and consensus gathering. Led by Sue Boardman, Director of the Gettysburg Foundation’s Executive Leadership Program and Licensed Battlefield Guide, participants studied decisions made during the battle, focusing upon how leadership styles can affect a team’s performance and lessons from the Battle of Gettysburg can help business leaders deal with everyday issues.

As one participant remarked: “the lessons of the past can be applied today and this course was a great example of historical leadership that can be applied to today’s business climate.”

The Gettysburg Foundation has been given a unique war log in the middle of the fierce fighting during the Battle of Gettysburg. This historically significant artifact was generously donated by Foundation board member Craig Bashein from Cleveland, Ohio. “I know the artifact will be in good hands with the Gettysburg Foundation,” said Mr. Bashein, who has been a Civil War Collector for over 25 years. “One of the goals of the Board of Directors is to improve the visitor experience and there is no better way to engage audiences than displaying one of the most iconic artifacts from the battlefield. It should be exciting for the public to know that the 'Gettysburg War Log' is returning home." This "victim of war" is considered the most substantial and historic war log from the Battle of Gettysburg surviving today.

“We are delighted to accept this tangible piece of history,” said Matthew C. Moen, president of the Gettysburg Foundation. “Craig's donation is vivid evidence of the violence that occurred on American soil, not far from our Museum and Visitor Center. We are thankful to Craig for entrusting us with this exceptional artifact.”

According to its oral history, the log was taken from a large section of an oak tree located in the Copse of Trees on Cemetery Ridge which was the center point of the Confederate’s assault on the Union line on July 3, 1863 during Pickett’s Charge. The tree not only witnessed the battle, but also suffered considerable damage from artillery shelling from both Union and Confederate forces. The log has numerous cannonball, canister shot, and shell fragments in its bark. This artifact was originally on display at the Chicago Columbian Exposition of 1893.

"Artifacts like this give us a glimpse of the physical trauma of battles like Gettysburg,” said Christopher Gwinn, Chief of Interpretation and Education at Gettysburg National Military Park. “Riddled with shot and shell, it's a counter-point to the pastoral beauty of today's park and a stark reminder of what this landscape must have looked like in July of 1863."

Visitors can now view it on display in the Rotunda of the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center.