Meet Our New President, Deb Buckner

We are pleased that Deb Buckner will serve as President of the Civil War Round Table of Kansas City in 2026-2027. Deb’s interest in the Civil War began as
a child hearing stories of her great-great-grandfather, William Hisaw, who served in the Confederate army as a member of Company G, Eighth Missouri Infantry. He
and his father, Frederick Hisaw, who had traveled from Tennessee to settle in Barry County, Missouri, went together to enlist in the Confederate Army, though the
elder Hisaw was deemed too old for service.

At age 15, after seeing Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland in the movie: They Died with Their Boots On, Deb set out on a quest to learn all she could about General
George Armstrong Custer, beginning with the three books authored by the General's widow, Elizabeth Bacon Custer. Two years later, after seeing Julie Harris portray Emily Dickinson in the one-woman show, The Belle of Amherst, Deb decided it would be fun to do something similar about Mrs. Custer.

Years went by occupied by high school debate, college, completion of a Master's degree in Public Administration, and earning a law degree. However, the Custer library continued to grow, even when there was no time to read the acquired books. Work in the Missouri Attorney General's Office led to a meeting with a handsome colleague of important Confederate ancestry, who was willing to accept her admiration for a “Yankee general.”

Several years of occupying the “parents' bench”, while two Buckner children had Taekwondo lessons, gave the opportunity to read all those Custer books. Ebay purchases added to the library and led to an acquaintance with husband-and-wife historians who sent Deb an 1870s reproduction dress that, Cinderella-like, was a perfect fit. With the stories, the dress, and the time, the 17-year-old's dream of portraying Libbie Custer became a reality at age 44, the same age Libbie was when she became a much-requested lecturer after publication of her first book. Deb has addressed various women's clubs and historical organizations, including the Civil War Round Table, through the past 22 years.

Deb and her husband, Simon B. “Chip” Buckner, IV, along with Chip's father, William Buckner, joined the Round Table in the early 2000s, and daughter, Jordan
Buckner, concerned about news of Civil War monuments being destroyed, later joined as well. Chip is a past president of the Round Table (2017-2018).

Deb looks forward to serving this organization and continuing its long tradition of hosting interesting speakers to preserve and promote this important chapter of our nation's history. Thank you, Deb!