Flaming Glory Veterans, Scouts Conduct Flag Retiring Ceremony Twice A Year

Old Glory deserves a death only by flame.

A group of Post Falls Boy Scouts this month took part in the proper retirement of this symbol of American people.

The Post Falls American Legion Post 143 hosts two ceremonies each year to properly retire flags that have become frayed by wind or faded by use.

The post keeps flags that are turned in by residents until the ceremony can be arranged using local Boy or Girl Scouts.

Unfortunately, many people throw flags away without following through with the ceremony, said John Dunlap, commander of the Post Falls American Legion Post 143.

“A lot of people overlook it,” Dunlap said. “But when they see the ceremony, a lot of people leave with tears in their eyes. It’s quite an impressive ceremony.”

Dunlap told the story of a Boy Scout who once refused to take part because he believed that burning the American flag was wrong.

Dunlap had the boy stand alongside him during the formal procedures. He explained that burning the flag is the ultimate insult to Americans if it’s done without the ceremony.

“It is a symbol of all of us. It’s what we fought for and died for,” said Dunlap, who retired after 31 years in the Navy and serving in both the Korean and Vietnam wars.

That’s why area veterans protested earlier this summer when they learned that a Coeur d’Alene parade ordinance - designed to avoid problems at Aryan Nations parades - also had prohibited color guards from carrying guns in the parade.

“I was very outspoken against the City Council for doing what they did,” Dunlap said. “If you take a flag out of stations, U.S. code says you will have guns on either side to protect it.”

That situation was solved after the City Council met in a special meeting and altered the ordinance to allow the veterans to march in the Fourth of July Parade - with guns.

Mike Holehan is the scout master for Troop 13, which is sponsored by the Post Falls American Legion. Holehan also allows Girl Scouts and Cub Scouts to take part.

“It helps them learn respect for the flag,” Holehan said. “This really just brings it home.”

If an American flag falls on the ground, it no longer should be flown, Dunlap said.

“If it gets soiled while flying, you can dry-clean it,” he said. “ If it becomes tattered or faded, residents should take it down, put a new one up and (the old flag) should be turned into an organization that retires the flag.”

It’s important that young Boy and Girl Scouts take part in something that recalls the sacrifices made in the past, he said.

“If we don’t keep in touch with that heritage, than we have lost our history and the foundation we built this country on,” he said.