‘Preserving Our Heritage, Inspiring Future Generations’ was the theme for a private Charters of Freedom fundraising reception — held at the historic Hagood-Mauldin House in downtown Pickens the afternoon of Thursday, August 20, 2026 – that officially announced an exciting project planned for the Pickens amphitheater –  stainless steel replicas of America’s founding documents — The Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, and the Bill of Rights — beautifully displayed with a waterfall.

State Senator Rex Rice had spoken with The Pickens County Chronicle several months ago about the non-profit organization Foundation Forward, based in North Carolina, having donated to the delegation those replicas of the founding documents (the originals of which are on display in the National Archives Museum in Washington, D.C.) and plans for having those replicas installed above the amphitheater. At that time, he said that it could be a $100,000 project, with also raising in-kind money (and he reiterated that amount to The Chronicle on August 20). “That’s going to be something great for Pickens,” he told The Chronicle. “It’s a great educational opportunity for students. The ones that can’t go to Washington will be able to come to Pickens and see the documents and study about them.”

Tom Wistar welcomed everyone to Thursday’s event, which was held on the grounds of the historic former home of the late Frances Hagood-Mauldin, who was the organizing regent of the Fort Prince George Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and who held the early Chapter meetings at her home.

Due to the exceptionally hot temperature and high heat index, the Pickens Fire Department provided several large misting fans for Thursday’s event.

Pickens Mayor Rev. Isaiah Scipio opened the event with prayer. “Oh, God, our heavenly Father, we thank you for this day and this opportunity to come together for one common cause. There’s something in a name – Charters of Freedom — where we exercise, acknowledge, and celebrate the freedom that we have through the documents that have been created for our benefit. Let us not forget how we have come this far. And we thank you that you brought us this far and you’re going to bring us all the way on. Bless each one that has something to do with this. Bless us collectively and individually, that we will be single-minded in doing that which is right, just, and pure. Father, we love you, and we praise you, and we lift you up, because you are worthy, worthy to be praised. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.”

Scott Lang, a member of Pickens County Council, led everyone in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag.

Sean Anderson, an Ohio native who currently lives in Tamassee, in Oconee County, then sang “God Bless America”, a song written more than 100 years ago by the late Irving Berlin.

Mike Unruh, from Foundation Forward, Inc., then spoke to give everyone a history of the Foundation Forward organization and how the idea for the Charters of Freedom began. “About 15 years ago, our founders, Vance and Mary Jo Patterson, went to Washington, D.C., to the National Archives, and they were there looking at the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, and they became overwhelmed with emotion. And they asked each other, why are we in our 60’s and this is the first time that we’ve come to see these documents? As they were driving back to North Carolina, they started to ponder how many people never get that opportunity, or they never take the opportunity. A lot of schools aren’t taking field trips.” Unruh added that less than one percent of Americans who live west of the Mississippi River see America’s founding documents in person.

“Vance and Mary Jo wanted to share that experience with their home community,” he said. “So, they worked with the city and county government to get a spot donated on the grounds of the historic courthouse, and they went back up to Washington, D.C., got a rough idea of the measurements of the display there in the National Archives, and they commissioned a granite company out of Minnesota called Coldspring Granite to do some drawings. About two years later, they dedicated what was then the first Charters of Freedom setting outside of Washington, D.C.” The documents, he said, were bronze with a granite fascia and covered with glass, and they had a concrete foundation that was reinforced with rebar.

“And that was the only one that they intended to do,” Unruh said. “But other communities in North Carolina, Murphy, and Asheville, and others, started taking notice and wanted to know how they could get a setting. So, Vance and Mary Jo started a 501c3 non-profit, and, so, out of their own pocket, they built one in Asheville, and they built one in Murphy.

“Vance runs Patterson Fan Company and a few other companies that are based out of Blythewood, South Carolina. And so they donated a setting to the city of Columbia, South Carolina on behalf of employees of Patterson Fan Company and their families.

“Other states started taking notice. And they built one in Indiana. They built one in Illinois. They built one in Culpeper, Virginia. Fast forward over 15 years later, we have built and dedicated 80 of these in 19 different states from Daytona, Florida to Bath, New York, to Wasilla, Alaska, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, 15 feet away from where President and Mrs. Reagan are buried.” It has been the goal, he said, to give a Charters of Freedom setting to every county in the United States.

“We’re a small 11-person non-profit,” Unruh said. Based on having 80 completed now, it would take hundreds of years to complete a setting for each of the more than 3,000 counties in the United States, he said.

“A couple of years ago, some things started happening. Some of the settings that we had built and put glass on were having condensation issues under the glass, especially in the morning, with the dew. So, we took the glass off a lot of our settings that were having those problems. But, then, the bronze documents, exposed to the elements, started to patina and become off-color. Once they’re fully green, like the Statue of Liberty or a church steeple, they look nice as green, and they look nice as bronze, but, the 50 years in between, they don’t look so nice. So, we started doing them on stainless steel. That way, they’ll hold up to the elements without the glass. Vance is 75 now. A little over a year ago, Vance said that, in his lifetime, he wants to complete his goal of giving one of these sets of documents to all 3,143 counties in the entire United States.

“So, he had a warehouse built. He purchased eight laser-engraving machines that run six days a week, and, every day, they’re able to engrave a full set of these documents, the Declaration of Independence, the four pages of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Civil Rights Amendments. And we put these in crates with videos and architectural drawings and other materials, and we are sending these crates to every county in the United States. And, at this rate, we are going to be able to accomplish this goal in about nine and a half years.

“Pickens, South Carolina is one of the first counties in the entire country to get one of those crates. We’re going to give you the documents, give you the materials, give you our expertise, and you can do that if you want, or you could do something completely different. Some counties have decided they’re going to frame it like movie poster frames outside of a movie theater and put it upon the wall of the courthouse or the town hall. Others have created kind of a traveling display on wheels, so they can take it to the schools, and different things like that.” Referring to the mobile version displayed at Thursday’s event, he added, “Our production manager is building a full document display like this out of cherry to house a set of documents indoors, and that’s going to be dedicated later this year at the White House Visitor Center in Washington, D.C. That’s going to give us the ability to do indoor settings, like at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston, where they don’t allow outdoor monuments, and other places like that, some state Capitol buildings where they don’t have green space outside.”

Referring to the design that Pickens has chosen to display the Charters of Freedom, Unruh said, “I got a call from our operations manager, Perry Snider, one day, and he said, ‘Have you checked your email?’” Once Unruh checked his email and saw the architectural rendering, he told Snider, “Ok, I’m in. Where is this going?” Snider told him, “Pickens. That’s what they’ve decided to do with their setting.” Unruh answered, “Let’s go for it. That sounds amazing.

“We are going to be giving a set of documents to every county in South Carolina, hopefully this year,” Unruh told those gathered at the event. “I’m working with State Senator Rex Rice on that right now.” Pickens County, Unruh said, is the first county to come up with a plan of what to do with their setting of documents. “And that’s what we’re here to celebrate today,” he said. “But I know that this is going to take donations and contributions, whether they be in cash form or in-kind services. So, if there is any way that you can help, or you know contractors or other people who might want to help, I’m here to tell you that, on behalf of Foundation Forward and Charters of Freedom, we really appreciate you accepting these documents and wanting to display them in such a grand way. We can’t way to see this happen and to be part of your dedication and unveiling when it all gets completed.” He also gave the official website for Foundation Forward, Inc., www.ChartersofFreedom.com.

Carolyn Nations, Chair of the Pickens County America 250 Committee and a member and immediate past Regent of the Fort Prince George DAR Chapter, then spoke about the importance of the Charters of Freedom and said, “We’re not simply talking about raising money. We’re investing in something much greater, the story of America and the responsibility to pass that story to the next generation. The Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, and the Bill of Rights were more than historic documents. They are the foundations of the freedoms we live under every single day. The Declaration proclaimed that our rights come not from the government but are inherent to us. The Constitution created the framework for a government of law, one designed to endure while still allowing ‘We the People’ to shape our nation. And the Bill of Rights put into words freedoms Americans sometimes take for granted, like freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, the right to assemble, and the right to petition the government, but there is something powerful about seeing these documents, not simply reading about them in a textbook.

“Imagine a child standing before the Charters of Freedom here in Pickens County. Perhaps a teacher has taught that child about Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, or the other delegates who debated the Constitution. But, now, that child can stand before these words and understand that this is his country and that some day it will be his responsibility to pass it on. Not everyone from Pickens County will have the opportunity to travel to Washington D.C. and visit the National Archives, but we have an opportunity to bring the principles represented by these great documents to a place where our children, grandchildren, family, Senators, and citizens can experience them for generations to come.

“During America’s 250^th anniversary, we have spent much time remembering those who fought for our liberty. But remembrance, alone, is not enough. We must also preserve what they gave us. The Charters of Freedom will give Pickens County a permanent place to do exactly that – a place to remember, a place to teach, a place to reflect, and to inspire. Our theme says it beautifully – ‘Preserving our heritage and inspiring future generations.’ That is what your contribution will help us accomplish. Years from now, many of us may never know the children who will stand before these documents, but, because of what we do here, those children will have an opportunity to know the names, the words, and the ideals that gave birth to this nation.  We are not simply building something for today. We are leaving something for tomorrow. And that is why the Charters of Freedom matter.”

Nations said that she used to be a first grade teacher, and, during her time as the Chair of the Pickens County America 250 Chair, she has made American Revolution-themed coloring books and has given them away to children. “I’m a firm believer of putting something in a child’s hands,” she said.

Charles Hood then spoke at length about topics in his books about Pickens, including about local history. “My goal is to celebrate the interest in local history,” he said. “There is so much of it.” Referring to the Charters of Freedom project, he said, “I’m really grateful to anybody who has made a donation.”

Architect Chris Stone then spoke about working with the City of Pickens in creating a concept and about the opportunity for him, as an architect, “to create something that has meaning long term. The way in which they asked this to be built, this is permanent,” he said. “I just want to thank you all, because, so many times in architecture, we do homes for people, and it’s an exciting time. We do businesses, and we do offices and renovation, and those are good times. But to do something like this would be an extraordinary time. And to really make this happen, be it this version or another version, it’s an honor and a privilege to allow me to do this with you. I hope and I plan on putting my efforts to it. And, if there’s anything I can do further for the city of Pickens, I’ll help make this happen.”

State Senator Rex Rice thanked everyone involved with the Charters of Freedom project, including all of the speakers before him, as well as Pickens County Historical Society Senior Vice President Wayne Kelley.

Rice said that local history will be included with the Charters of Freedom display. “We’re going to have our own touch on this,” he said.

Rice thanked Foundation Forward for providing the documents at no cost “not only to Pickens but throughout the state and the nation. That’s a wonderful thing that you do. Thank you for everything y’all have done.”

When he and Unruh met, Rice said, Unruh had provided him with a brochure and information on the Charters of Freedom. “I looked at it, and I said, ‘How are we going to do this?’ Actually, I put an earmark in the budget for $25,000 per county, but we ended up with no earmarks, so, that fell apart.” Foundation Forward then told  him that they would donate the documents. “So, we’re now working on getting every county in the state to sign up.

“I want to thank everybody else that has worked on this and is working on this and will be working on it. This is going to be a great addition. It’s going to be beautiful.”

Wistar then thanked everyone and said that the Charters of Freedom founding documents will be something permanent in downtown Pickens that everyone can bring their families to see, and he closed the event with a quote from our nation’s third President. “I want to leave you with some great words from Thomas Jefferson: ‘Educate and inform the whole mass of the people…They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.’ I think those are great words.”