On a happier note, son got his name and picture in the local paper. His Boy Scout Troop has several places around town where you can deposit your old worn flags and they'll dispose of them properly. He was leader of the color guard at the flag disposal ceremony Monday night. They do it several times a year but Monday was the annual ceremony open to the public. Mostly just parents though.
Bare with me, this is long. The Scout Troop my son belongs to puts up the flag and takes it down at every meeting, event, whenever they're at the Scout hut, always. The high light of the whole thing for me was a 90+years old WW2 vet that stopped for the ceremony(known him all my life). He first went by in a pickup truck and must have realized what was going on. He had his son turn around and come back. He struggled to get out of the pickup and walk a few steps (pushing oxygen bottle) to where the Boy Scouts were lined up (Crowd was across the yard from the Scouts). The Scouts were called to attention, told to salute, the color guard advanced and as the scout master blew the bugle, the color guard slowly lowered the old flag and folded it. The old vet had snapped to attention, saluted and held it right along with the scouts until the command "parade rest "was given. He had tears in his eyes as two scouts cut the stars away and burned them first, then the stripes.
The scouts then proceeded to dispose of several more old flags they had folded on a nearby table. Slowly, one by one the scouts reverently carried the flags to the table for cutting and burning, saluted, about faced and retreated. But two flags was about all the old vet could stand for. His son and a couple of scouts helped him back into the pickup were it was cooler and a few minutes later they left.
