David Buck: Connecting Past – Present – Future to Wyse Fork.
David Buck of North Lenoir High School was competitively chosen by the American Battlefield Trust to be one of only 10 young leaders to “serve as the youth face and voice of the American Battlefield Trust” for a year.
The American Battlefield Trust Youth Leadership Team (YLT) is a rotating group of 10 young people, aged 15-18, who are selected every year to participate in Advocacy Day; create preservation, education, or visitation projects in their local communities; and attend the Thank You Weekend.
By supporting this group of motivated young leaders, the Trust hopes to create a ripple effect to support battlefield preservation, visitation, history, and education in our nation. The goal is for young people to connect and to empower each other to create change within their own schools and communities. The American Battlefield Trust Youth Leadership Team is supported by the generous contributions of the Pipkin Charitable Foundation.
When David applied for this prestigious role, he was required to submit an essay to the American Battlefield Trust covering the topic of “What the Trust mission means to you.” He also had to develop a project proposal focused on “using media platforms to create videos to expand awareness and interest in the Wyse Fork Battlefield.”
As David discussed his goals and objectives during a conversation with local historian Dennis Harper, David’s deep interest in history was apparent and served as a motivating factor in his desire to participate in the Trust’s outreach.
David is no stranger to being recognized for his interest in history. He was selected by “National History Day” to serve as part of the “Young Peoples Continental Congress” in Philadelphia, PA. While there, David visited Independence Hall and the surrounding sites that make up “Independence Mall” and the relatively new Museum of the American Revolution. He also served as an intern at the C.S.S Neuse Museum here in Kinston.
Part of David’s orientation with the American Battlefield Trust included a Zoom call from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday, August 23. David and the other nine students spoke with leadership teams of the American Battlefield Trust.
David met with Dennis on Wednesday, August 20, to discuss both the Civil War and Revolutionary War aspects of the greater Wyse Fork Battlefield. Dennis shared information about the two Revolutionary War loyalist skirmishes that occurred on the grounds of what we know today as the Wyse Fork Battlefield of the Civil War.
For context during these conversations, Dennis Harper explained the activities over several years that the American Battlefield Trust had taken relative to battlefield preservation. As David explored the various topics for consideration, he laid out some general ideas related to possible videos focused on the “who, what, when, where” of the battles fought on that ground.
Dennis helped David understand more clearly the resources the Battlefield Commission of the Historical Preservation Group (Kinston, NC) and its members can offer to support David’s effort.
Photo: (l-r) David Buck, mother Sandy Buck and Dennis Harper meet to discuss potential promotions for Wyse Fork. (Photo by Skip Riddle)
Neuse News is an independent, locally-owned startup based in downtown Kinston. We’re committed to providing free, hyper-local news across Lenoir, Greene, and Jones counties—the kind of stories that matter most, delivered in a format built for today.
We don't charge subscriptions. Instead, we rely on readers like you—and the businesses that serve our community. When you shop local, dine local, and click on our sponsor ads, you help us keep real journalism free and accessible.
