By Kathy Cummings

Eric McClain was an active member of the Painted Stone Settlers and the Sons of the American Revolution. He was also a member of the Shelby County Historical Society. In other words Eric loved history.

Eric started with Painted Stone quietly. Re-enactors come and go. When you realize that someone is coming around frequently it's time that they become a member. Eric became a member, then, before long he became an officer. He was always there. Steady and consistent. My favorite kind of member. He worked on the cannon crew. He participated in the battle re-enactment. He was always patient and encouraging to new re-enactors.

Several years ago Eric and his wife Sally hosted our annual Christmas party at their house. That's when I knew just how serious Eric was about life in the 18th Century. His interest spanned longer than the years I had known him. Many homes have a "man cave." A room dedicated to a sport - with jerseys and framed memorabilia on the walls. The colors coordinated with a certain team. And I have been to re-enactors homes where there is an "18th century room."

But at Eric and Sally's home the 18th century was everywhere. Mixed with everyday life were period paintings and prints, books, a whole room with clothes and weapons, and accouterments. And the clothing and gear were mostly made by Eric.

But Eric didn't just show up at events he worked hard. Hard for PSS and hard for the SAR. At our September event Eric took on the thankless school day task of parking the buses. From the time the first bus rolled in until the last one pulled out with their 800+ students on board. Eric McClain was in charge! He assigned the parking and he dealt with the home school moms who wanted to park in the bus spots.

He helped see that everyone had cold water on extra hot days. My favorite photos of Eric are the ones (below) where he is talking to school students, always interested, always engaged.

We will miss you Eric.