Members of the Lone Star Society celebrate Texas’s independence. Courtesy | Josh Underwood
Deep in the heart of southern Michigan, a group of Hillsdale College students are celebrating the unique culture of Texas, thousands of miles from home.
The Lone Star Society, founded by junior Josh Underwood and his cousin, senior Madelyn Hornell, emerged from a casual Texas Independence Day gathering last spring, according to junior Josh Mistry, the club’s treasurer.
“Towards the end of it, a couple of us gathered around and joked about how much fun it would be if we could get the school to pay for this,” Mistry said. “We soon came around to the idea and believed that a club promoting Texan culture would emphasize parts of Hillsdale’s culture with a Texan flavor.”
What started as an offhand joke about institutional funding morphed into a genuine passion project, with students volunteering to shape this nascent club’s future.
“Ten minutes later, we had pieced together an officer board from the partygoers and decided to make the Lone Star Society a real deal,” Underwood said.
Far from being an exclusive Texas-only group, the club welcomes anyone interested in the state’s culture.
“Over half of our current membership roll is from outside of Texas,” Underwood said. “We want to share what makes Texas awesome with all of campus, not hoard it for ourselves or guard any pretense of exclusivity.”
The club’s approach transformed what could have been a niche cultural organization into a campus-wide movement. By welcoming students from every state and background, the Lone Star Society turned Texas pride from a potential barrier into an invitation.
“Our roster each year will revolve around the yearly Texas Independence Day Party on March 2 and a viewing of the 2004 ‘Alamo’ movie four days later on the battle’s anniversary — the one-two punch of Texas Holy Week,” Underwood said.
The club’s signature Texas Independence Day Party has proven very popular.
“We had 40 or so students and professors stop into our most recent Independence Day Party,” Underwood said. “The demand for Texas is growing, and we’re ready to meet it.”
Events typically feature quintessential Texas experiences. Mistry highlighted the club’s love for live music, noting that some events have included line dancing instruction to complement country music, which has made the events “very lively.”
For Mistry, born and raised just outside of Dallas, the club is more than just a social gathering.
“Many of the tangible aspects of Texan culture reflect underlying sentiments of freedom, liberty, and an independent and self-reliant spirit,” he said.
Looking ahead, the club hopes to expand its offerings. Potential future events include two-step parties and Texas Hold ‘Em nights.
Mistry sees the club as a bridge between Texas and Hillsdale’s conservative ideological traditions, a way of extending the state’s philosophical spirit beyond its geographical boundaries.
“As Texas fills up with expats from liberal states, I expect more and more Texans to seek out the education that Hillsdale offers,” he said.
Underwood sees the club as a way to foster broader connections.
“What starts as a lighthearted party for some random state becomes a springboard for everyone to talk about what they love and miss from their different parts of this great country,” he said. “Patriotism for your home state is important, and I want to see a revival of that on campus for Texans and non-Texans alike.”
Underwood’s love of the state has been with him his entire life.
“My grandparents and parents instilled a love of Texas in me since the womb,” Underwood said. “My dad was from Wisconsin and loved it up there, but he opted to be buried in Texas since he loved the state so dearly.”
According to Underwood, an Austin-native, Texas is a microcosm of America.
“We have liberty, friendly people, country dancing, wide open spaces as well as bustling cities, delicious food, and the Second Amendment,” he said. “That’s what makes Texas great for me.”
The Lone Star Society meets a few times each semester, mostly to celebrate important days in Texas history.
“I attended the first event they held and had a great time,” said Jane Kerr, a recent member but non-Texas native. “They had live music, and it was nice to spend time with everyone else who attended the event.”
Underwood added that so far, meetings have been ad hoc, fun gatherings of members.
For those wondering what they might gain from joining, Mistry offered two answers.
“Materially, they would gain access to delicious food, great live music, and admission to our events,” he said. “They would also gain appreciation for the love of freedom and liberty, as well as a chance to interact with other like-minded individuals.”
For interested students, the process to join is simple. Anyone born in or who spent significant time in Texas can join automatically. Others can become members by taking a short quiz – the “Lone Star Patriotism Exam.”
