AMERICAN FLAGS RETIRE, TOO
Have you ever wondered how to properly dispose of worn and tattered American Flags? The Tellico Village VFW Post is often contacted by Villagers who want to properly dispose of their old American Flags and until now, the post had no organized means of collecting them.
To meet this community need, the post decided to obtain an appropriate deposit box for placement in a high visibility, easily accessible Village location. The post then contacted a number of site owners eventually deciding to locate the flag deposit box at the Marathon gas station near the Village Square shopping area. Owner/Operator Andy Patel graciously gave permission to do this.
Post Commander Tony Newton commented, “Tellico Village VFW Post is proud to be able to provide our residents an appropriate place to drop off their American flags knowing that on Flag Day, Jun 14, they will be properly and ceremoniously retired.
The deposit box is made of all-weather material and bright red in color to the right of the store entrance. Not to be confused with blue US mail or Brown UPS boxes, these red containers should be used for depositing US flags only.
Old, weathered, faded, ripped or torn flags should be replaced with a new flag. A retired flag deserves to be treated with the respect as it still represents our great nation and its citizens. When the flag is worn out or otherwise no longer a fitting emblem for display, it should be destroyed in a dignified way. Proper flag disposal known as a Flag Retirement Ceremony is one of the many patriotic duties posts of the Veterans of Foreign Wars conduct nation-wide. The Tellico Village VFW will conduct this ceremony each year on Flag day June 14th. The location is yet to be determined, but for those wishing to attend, the public will be notified when a location/time is scheduled.
Conducting a flag retirement ceremony takes several steps. First, the flag should be folded in its customary triangular manner. Next, it is important that the fire be fairly large and of sufficient intensity to ensure a complete burning of the flag. After placing the flag(s) on the fire, individuals may come to attention, salute the flag (right over your heart or military salute), recite the Pledge of Allegiance, and have a brief period of silent reflection. After the flags are completely consumed, the fire should then be safely extinguished and the ashes buried.
Vietnam veteran Dale Blanton is pictured above putting the finishing touches on the new flag deposit box.
Comments
AMERICAN FLAGS RETIRE, TOO — No Comments
HTML tags allowed in your comment: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>