News:

We need volunteers in sales, marketing, PR, IT, and general "running of an organization." 
Maximize your Appleseed energy to make this program grow, and help fill the empty spots
on the firing line!  An hour of time spent at this level can have the impact of ten or a
hundred hours on the firing line.  Want to help? Send a PM to Monkey!

Main Menu

Learn Today, Teach Tomorrow. The American Way, the Appleseed Way

Started by Appleseed, July 19, 2009, 02:57:08 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

Appleseed

We at Appleseed not only want to teach you about your Heritage and the Traditional Rifle Marksmanship skills of our Founders, we want to equip you to teach others as well.

Throughout your Appleseed Shoot, you will hear, "Learn Today, Teach Tomorrow". 

This is what Appleseed is providing thousands around the nation every year, the knowledge and ability to not only learn uniquely American Heritage and Skills, but also how to pass them on. 

As you are learning how to shoot your rifle more accurately than you imagined possible, you will also be given the tools to go home and pass these very skills on to your friends, family and neighbors.  That is right, you not only learn a skill, you learn how to teach others.....This is truly what the Founders expect of us.

You will also gain a greater understanding of our special American Heritage and have it presented to you in a way which will allow you to pass it on to others as well.   The "Heritage Presentations" of the Appleseed are done in a manner which makes it easier for you to remember what happened on the day your nation was born.  You will remember the stories and the people who were there on that fateful day in April, 1775. 

Below is a series of what it means to "Learn Today, Teach Tomorrow", take a look and see if you might enjoy this aspect of the Appleseed program.

Appleseed

#1
MARKSMANSHIP

Rifle marksmanship has been a pillar in the American experience, from the moment our forefathers settled this land, and it was solidified as an American Heritage on April 19th, 1775, when "marksmanship met History and the Heritage began". 

Throughout America's history, the skill of the rifleman has stood out as one of those skills that distinguished those of this land from those of others.  At no time in our history did this uniquely American skill mean so much as during the Revolutionary War, when our Founding Generation was forced to utilize these skills in defense of their, and our, Liberties and Freedoms. 

"They have voted ten companies of riflemen to be sent from Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia to join the army before Boston. They are an excellent species of light infantry. They use a peculiar kind of musket, called a rifle. It has circular....grooves within the barrel, and carries a ball with great exactness to great distances. They are the most accurate  marksmen in the World."                                                            
                                                                                                                       - John Adams to Abigail Adams, 1775

Since our Founding era, this skill has been passed on from generation to generation, continuing that very same Tradition that was so important to those first Americans.  This skill has shown to be useful and practical to the people of America, in providing for their families, in protection of American Liberty, and in being a cultural link across generations and social structures. 

In no other nation in the world is this Tradition so rooted in the founding of a nation and so freely passed on from one generation to the next.  When an American Rifleman slings their rifle over their shoulder, they carry with them a Heritage that they can trace back to the birth of this nation, to that first American generation, just as their fathers and grandfathers were able to.  When the American Rifleman slings up their rifle for the shot, they are employing those very skills that every American Rifleman has employed, from the very first through to today.

The RWVA is dedicated to continue this uniquely American skill and Tradition.  The Project Appleseed is specifically designed to teach you these skills and Tradition, but more importantly, to help YOU pass on this Tradition to others, your children, the next generation!  The skills you learn at an Appleseed are not new, in fact, they can be traced back to the very day that this nation was born.   At an Appleseed shoot, you not only learn these same skills, you also learn how to teach them to others.  You, in fact, become that very critical bridge that links tomorrow's generations to yesterday's generation, adding that next step in the long progression of American Riflemen.

When you attend an Appleseed Shoot, the volunteer RWVA Instructor will demonstrate their determination and dedication to passing on this American Tradition to you and those you bring with you.   They will stress to you the importance of continuing this precious and unique American Tradition.  As you travel home after your Appleseed Shoot, you will carry with you two things that you did not bring.  The first being knowledge of your forefathers, in the field of rifle marksmahship, something that all too few Americans possess today.  The second being a mandate to pass on these very skills to all you can, your family, friends, neighbors.  This mandate comes not only from your RWVA Instructors, but from the Founding Fathers themselves! 

LEARN TODAY, TEACH TOMORROW!  This is the message of Appleseed to you.  Take what we share with you, that which was shared with us, and pass it on to others.  If we do not share these skills and Tradition, with those that come after us, we will be letting down those first American Riflemen and let those skills that are unique to our fellow countrymen for generations, fade away.  Each generation has the obligation to give to the next, those skills that they inherited from the previous.

"Learn Today, Teach Tomorrow".....give your children and grandchildren that gift the Founders desired for them.....


Appleseed

#2
HERITAGE:

Have you ever ask yourself why America is unique?  Perhaps you have heard something about American history that was quite a bit different from what you were taught in school?

Your nation, the American nation is the most unique nation in the world, and perhaps in world history.  No other nation can attribute its birth to a rebellion, revolution, dedicated to Liberty for her people.  Few nations can trace their birth to a date and time, but YOUR nation can.

Our Founders had you and I in mind when they decided to face the most powerful nation in the world, with the most powerful army in the world.

"Posterity! You will never know, how much it cost the present generation, to preserve your Freedom! I hope you will make a good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in Heaven, that I ever took half the pains to preserve it." - John Adams (Letter from John Adams to Abigail Adams, 26 April 1777) 

As you can see, the men and women of early America understood that they were sacrificing and bleeding for more than their own benefits, but for a way of life for the many generations that would follow them.  This is both extraordinary and unique to America, and you and your children are the beneficiaries of this Cause of our Founders.

At your Appleseed, you were taught about the people and events of April 19th, 1775.  This was the birth of your nation, the "labor pains" that lead up to the events of Lexington and Concord, ended in a glorious birth of the greatest nation that Liberty has ever seen.  You were not just being "taught" about your history, your Heritage, you were given the information to share with your friends, family and neighbors.  While the information may seem a bit lengthly and complex, your Founders expect you to share them with all you know.  Perhaps you can not remember all the details of the stories, but few walk away on Sunday afternoon without that feeling of awe and pride for what their forefathers have done for them.  Most also carry with them a sense of humility, that so many would be willing to give so much for them, and their children.

What you learned, and especially what you felt, is what you can share with your friends, it is what you can teach to your family.  This is the Cause of Appleseed, to share with you your Heritage as passed on by your forefathers and to equip you to pass it on to others.

Your nation, the nation you inherited from your fathers, and will be passing on to your children, has a beautiful Heritage.  She was born of rebellion to servitude, and for the Cause of Freedom.   Against the odds of ever being successful, in the face of overwhelming forces, in pursuit of something that people of that time were not accustomed to, your fathers stood for a Cause.  They stood for generations that were yet to come, and that would never be able to repay or thank them.  Many of these very men would suffer the ultimate sacrifice for a vision of a way of life that they would never enjoy.

They asked but two things from us, for this grand blessing.  They asked that we would remember and honor them and to preserve and pass on what they passed on to us. 

If we do not teach our fellow countrymen and our children where this nation came from, there is little chance we will understand the course we have been set on.  It matters what our Founders desired for us, it matters that we remember what that was.  Without a full knowledge of our Heritage, there is no chance that we will maintain it, thus continuing the Tradition and wishes of our Founders. 

So "Learn Today, Teach Tomorrow" means that you continue to pass on the history, the Heritage, and the events of the day of this nation's birth to others.  You have heard the story of your Founders, of the birth of your nation, you be the judge.  Is it a worthy story?  Is it a story that is worthy of repeating?  So you are urged to share it with all you know. 

The Founders understood that the generations to come would need to remember and value the events that they witnessed first hand and participated in. 

Our neighbors need to hear the story of those that struggled to secure the Liberties that they take for granted.  After an Appleseed you take home with you, a greater understanding of your nation's birthday, greater than most every other American in this nation today.  Our history, our Heritage, has taken a back seat to the distractions of modern America.  Your Founders are calling to you, asking that you remember what they did for you and preserve that very nation that they have passed on to you.  Passing on their Heritage, your Heritage, will ensure that their sacrifice, and that of millions of Americans after them, will not be for naught.  Rather, it will ensure that their efforts and sacrifices will result in the blessings that they had in mind for us, on those very days that they made those sacrifices.

Your Founders ask you not to take up your musket, not to lay down your lives, but only remember their sacrifices, honor their gifts to us, and pass on their Heritage to our children.  Their price for our Liberties and Freedoms was very dear, the price they have charged us is very small.  Preserving their Heritage, preserving our nation, through the teaching of our history and Heritage, indeed a small price to pay. 

"Learn Today, Teach Tomorrow"....it is what our Founders have asked of us, it is what Appleseed brings to you. 

Appleseed

#3
SEVENTH STEP:

It is midday Saturday, during your Appleseed Shoot.  You have been instructed on the '6 Steps to firing an accurate shot'.  You have been reminded of these '6 Steps', over and over.  You have been shown how you can determine which of the '6 Steps' you are not executing properly, by looking at your target.  You have been told over and over, if you persist, if you concentrate, on those '6 Steps', you will shoot a Rifleman's score on the AQT.

Now, late afternoon on Sunday, perhaps you, or some of your new shooting friends, have done all of the above and have demonstrated that the '6 Steps' work as advertised, and have shot a 210 or better on the AQT.  This means it is time to present the coveted Appleseed Rifleman's Patch.

The '6 Steps', these are the fundamentals, those very same fundamentals which your Founding Fathers would teach you, if you were at the range with them.  However, while they taught you the '6 Steps', they would also be teaching you about an additional, more important step to becoming a real Rifleman in the Tradition of our Founders.  This is the 'Seventh Step', and you will hear about it quite a bit more at your Appleseed event. 

As you can see, being a Rifleman is more than being accurate with a rifle.  The Rifleman of the Founding Generation were not only good shots, they held a spirit of Liberty and were men of action..... they were doers.  This spirit was pervasive in this nation on April 19th, 1775, where people of that time, in that place, just did what they needed to do. 

These same first Americans expect of us this very spirit, that we would be a nation of Riflemen..... of doers. 

Interesting is the notion of modern Americans having been sold the bill of goods that they can not have any effect in their community, in their states and in their nation.  The 21st Century Americans have either opted for inaction over action..... Why is this?   

We often speak of the need for 21st Century Americans needing to over come 3 arch rivals of Liberty to ensure their nation remains the free nation they inherited from the Founding Fathers.....  These are ignorance, laziness and apathy.   Appleseed seeks to equip you with the tools to not only over come these foes, but to help your family, friends, neighbors and coworkers to overcome them as well.

The Seventh Step, the most important of them all, is the result of conquering those 3 foes which are holding you back.  After an Appleseed, after hearing about your Founding Generation sacrificing dearly for your Liberties, so you may pass them on to your children, you are no longer ignorant.  You are wide awake to their sacrifice and their desire for you to live in a free nation.

After an Appleseed, you will have proven you CAN DO!   You can learn how to shoot your rifle better than you ever imagined, you can learn those steps which need to be followed to improve (and you have even learned how to show your friends and family). 

After an Appleseed, our hope is for you to also go home with the desire to "make good use of it", like John Adams has asked you to do.    Our hope is for you to understand this.... If not you, then who?   If it is not you who will secure the Liberties of this generation and pass them on to the next generation, then who?

You, our fellow Appleseeder, are in the ranks of very few modern Americans, but you have the Founders standing shoulder to shoulder with you.  You are a fellow Rifleman, a fellow Doer!   You may not know what specific task needs to be done right now, but you do know you can accomplish any task which you persist at.  You have over 230 years of proof to lean upon and millions of fellow Rifleman, from then to know, to share the load with. 

So the wonderful Seventh Step, the one true step which is most precious to us Appleseeders for the preservation of our country as passed on to us by our Founders, it is your step to take.......