Boy Scouts and VFW retire almost 500 flags

May 28, 2009 2:57 pm
Ellis Hughes stands at the head of a line of people preparing American flags for retirement by burning them. Nearly 500 flags were retired on Sunday
Ellis Hughes stands at the head of a line of people preparing American flags for retirement by burning them. Nearly 500 flags were retired on Sunday

Scout Troop 430 and VFW Post 2995 retired nearly 500 worn and tattered American flags Sunday, May 24 in a somber ceremony at the VFW post in Redmond.

Many of the flags were collected by Troop 430 of St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Medina, led by Ellis Hughes as a part of his Eagle Service Project. Ellis organized teams to build collection boxes and staff collection sites at the Bellevue Village QFC over the past several weekends.

Over 125 individuals brought about 200 flags to the Boy Scouts. Most had a story to go along with their flag.

Some flags were party favors from Fourth of July celebrations. Others have been flown since September 11, and are now showing wear. A few were used to drape the caskets of men and women who have died in the service of their country.

On Saturday, May 23, volunteers carefully folded each flag. Many were stretched and tattered, making the folding difficult.

The next day, about 30 minutes before the ceremony was to begin, the VFW started a fire in its fire pit. Shortly after 2 p.m., the Scouts and the VFW honor guard lined up at attention. The honor guard held up one of the flags, and the group heard a speech about the powerful symbolism of the American flag. The honor guard then placed the flag on the flames. The Scouts and the audience watched in silence as the flames fully consumed the flag.

The participants then lined up, each with a flag. One after another, the volunteer approached the fire and tossed the flag into the flames, stepped back and saluted the flag, and silently returned to the end of the line. The ceremony took about an hour and a half.

The fire grew progressively hotter. After about two hours, the last remnants of all the flags were consumed.

After the ceremony, Senior Vice Commander and head of the honor guard, Jim Weaver, signed off on Ellis’ Eagle project workbook, completing this phase of his Eagle project.