In 1862, Charles Bump Conger answers the challenge to do his patriotic duty in the Civil War and enlists in the One Hundred and Fortieth Pennsylvania Volunteers. Left at home is his young wife, Isadora, and three small children to fend for themselves. What was expected to be a few months of military service transitions into three years of conflicting views, hardship and tragedy. In the aftermath, misunderstandings result in a rift in the family structure. Forty years later these issues are confronted as a community Memorial Day celebration triggers remembrances of military service and home front hardships.
