Worn and damaged flags were honored in a sunset ceremony on Flag Day at Jackman Park in Glenview.
Laurence Theriault, a co-organizer of the June 14 ceremony and a member of the Father John J. Dussman Knights of Columbus, said when an American flag becomes old and worn there is a formal process that should be followed for retiring it.
“The flag stands for freedom for all of us, it’s all about freedom,” Theriault said.
The flag retirement ceremony was open to the public and gathered members of Knights of Columbus groups, American Legion Post 166, the Glenview Navy League and Boy Scout Troops 55 and 175.
The formal ceremony involves a process known as separating the flag’s colors where scissors are used to remove the blue square of stars from the rest of the flag. That is followed by a salute to the flag and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
Lt. Colonel Ronald Tye, a native Chicagoan who served in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom, spoke at the event.
Tye said when we think about the value of the flag, we have to think beyond the piece of cloth.
“In uniform, we wear a flag on our sleeve in a place of honor, symbolizing duty, honor, country, always going forward towards the threat, never retreating,” he said.
Flags that were not submitted for retirement during the June 14 ceremony can be turned in at the American Legion booth at the Glenview Summer Festival on June 30. Marked boxes are also present near the Veterans Memorial at Glenview Road and River Drive and the recycling center in the lobby of Glenview Village Hall, 2500 East Lake Avenue, organizers say.
Mark Toledano, an Eagle Scout from Troop 175, says a flag ceremony honors the old and the new.
“Renewing the flag can be a symbol of renewing our American spirit. Our spirit can get worn and tattered just like a flag, and so we take time every June 14 to give that flag a proper retirement,” Toledano said.
