George Smith, President of the U.S. Colored Troops Living History Association, issued the following message, concerning the passing of Dexter Akinsheye, our brother in arms. We had the pleasure of meeting him and his young cadets at a Fort Pocahontas Reenactment.
President's Message
March 2010
USCTLHA
Membership
Friends
On April 3, 2010, many of us will assemble in Washington, D.C. to celebrate the life of Dexter Akinsheye. Dexter will be remembered for his many contributions to the preservation of the history of the USCT and his contributions to our modern day interpretation of the history of the USCT. Dexter truly embodied the spirit of the USCT.
Dexter was so moved by the legacy of the USCT that he invested time and energy to nurture the USCT cadet program in Washington. I still have vivid warm feelings of the pride I experienced while observing the cadets in Wilmington, North Carolina and at Camp Nelson, Kentucky. The impact of Dexter's work with these young men will be felt and witnessed for years to come. The history of the USCT will certainly not be forgotten in the minds of this group of youth. I pray and hope that someone in the Washington, D.C. area will emerge to continue the cadet program.
As a tribute to Dexter's work and the legacy of the USCT, I am renewing by efforts in Murfreesboro, Tennessee to establish a cadet program. The efforts of the 13th USCT Regiment to establish a cadet program in the past was not successful. Our frustrations with this failed effort caused us to abandon trying over the last few years to direct our attention to the recruitment of adults. As you can imagine the competition for the attention of a young man is stiff as he begins the transition from elementary school to middle school...
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