5 minute read
Thinking About Flags
from The Contact 7-3-24
by okumc
BY MARLYS CERVANTES
“May we think of freedom, not as the right to do as we please, but as the opportunity to do what is right.” ~Peter Marshall, Scottish-American Pastor
As we celebrate the 4th of July, we see U.S. flags all around us, and it seems a good time to consider a few things about the upkeep of the flags themselves. At First United Methodist Church in Ponca City, we host Troop 501 of the Boy Scouts of America, which is a troop comprised of young women instead of young men. These young women serve the church and community in a variety of ways.
One way that comes to mind this time of year deals with a flag ceremony. When I asked about the process for retirement of flags, I was told that they generally do so along with their Court of Honor, to make it an even more formal event.
Members of the church or community leave worn flags for the troop in our church office. I know I have friends who give me their worn flags to bring along with ours for proper disposal. As a church, we’ve made this service more well-known recently so others in the community who do not personally know another Scout member or organization that provides the service will have a place to bring their flags.
The most recent Court of Honor was held at Scout Master John King’s house with 11 scouts, five leaders, and several family members and guests, including two Ponca City police officers, present. The Court of Honor had several highlights.
Senior Patrol Leader Lily Davenport opened the Court of Honor with the presentation of colors followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, Scout Oath, Scout Law and the Outdoor Code. Next Davenport, assisted by Quartermaster Caitlin Cannon, presented the Scouts with multiple merit badges they had earned.
Alyssa Cannon was introduced as the troop’s newest Eagle Scout, and Lauren King was recognized as having achieved the rank of Life Scout. Cannon, Davenport and Phoenix Castro were recognized as having achieved the rank of Star Scout.
After all eligible scouts received their badges, the special flag retirement ceremony began. According to the U.S. Flag Code, your flag, no matter how worn or tattered cannot just be thrown away. It must be “destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.”
For most people, giving their flags to a Scout troop or an organization such as the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars is the best solution. Troop 501 had over a dozen U.S. flags and two Oklahoma flags to give a final parade and presentation before placing them into the fire. Each flag is paraded past the group present, unfurled to its full size for a final moment commemorating its last time representing our nation (or the state in the case of the Oklahoma flags) before it is placed in the fire. Those present then watch the smoke curl its way upward to the heavens.
“A lot of things go through your head as you watch this final viewing of each flag,” says Scout Leader Tamara Bucher. “Ultimately, I thought most about the privilege that our troop has in being asked to retire these symbols of our country. The Scouts’ demeanor as they carried the flags showed that they knew they were entrusted to retire these American symbols with the utmost respect and reverence, and they did so.”
The last bit of the ceremony this time included the burning of a worn Bible of Laura Southard, a member of partner church First Presbyterian, which had a tattered cover and pages falling out. The Bible was given back to the Lord through the flames, where it was recognized that the Word within never changes even though the physical nature of the book became worn. The pages created different colored smoke that rose, turning then to ash.
It would seem the scouts have Pastor Peter Marshall’s attitudes about service just right—they look toward our nation as a place of freedom and respect, but they do so with thoughts of service and ethics. The young women of Troop 501 are truly role models for others in the community, and even those of us much older than they can learn from their willingness to serve and their diligence in earning merits and rank along with respect.
“The ceremony was moving,” says Bucher, “and created a great deal of thoughtful conversation afterward.” The leaders and scouts of Troop 501 would like to thank host church First United Methodist Church and now partner church First Presbyterian Church for their ongoing support.
