Mark Gelhar from the Hastings Veterans of Foreign Wars Lyle Russel Post 1210 (VFW) was shopping with Fleet Farm manager Marcie Jay for fishing poles to give away during at the City of Hastings ‘Take a kid fishing’ event earlier this year. During that shopping trip, they ended up on the topic of American flags and Jay had mentioned to Gelhar that they did not have a proper way to accept flags in need of retirement. That got the gears spinning for Gelhar.

Gelhar put things in motion with a phone call to Quality One Woodworking in the industrial park, looking for a donation of a custom box for Fleet Farm customers to deposit retired flags into. Quality One jumped at the opportunity and knocked it out of the park. They designed and built a beautiful oak box with custom engraving on the top of the box.

“You'll see when you look at the box, Quality One Woodwork went above and beyond the call of duty with all that engraving. We did not ask for or expect that. Then, the VFW bought labels for it and I think we've got a beautiful box for retired flags,” explained Gelhar.

The box will be located at the very front of the store to the left of the entrance. While the team was figuring out where to place the box, they discussed the need for a pedestal. The Quality One team instantly began discussing how to build a pedestal and how to add a sign letting people know they can deposit flags for proper retirement.

What is the proper retirement of a flag?

The US Flag is the embodiment of freedom, a symbol that is to be honored. American flags should always be treated with respect and honor because they represent those who worked, fought, and sacrificed their lives for our rights and freedoms. It also represents all of us; the hard-working people who make this country something to be proud of. In fact, Congress amended the Flag Code in 1976 to include the statement that the U.S. flag is a living entity and, as such, has all the rights thereof, including the right to exist and expire with dignity.

That means, throwing a flag in the garbage is a huge no as it is not dignified. Disposal of a US Flag can be done at home, but it is a process to do so with dignity. A quick web search gives you the steps to do so and you will find that those instructions come from the main VFW organization. Aside from the ceremonial aspect, most homeowners do not have a firepit that can be used to properly burn a flag. Which is where the drop box comes into play. If your flag is tattered or torn in any way, it is no longer fit for display and should be properly retired. The easy way to retire your flag now is to bring it to Fleet Farm and drop it in the box. Hastings residents can also bring the flag to the Legion downtown for retirement.