EYE ON THE GRAND OLD FLAG; ELKS RETIRE EIGHT NATIONAL BANNERS IN HONOR CEREMONY.Byline: Don Holland Daily News Staff Writer Eight American flags, each tattered tat·tered adj. 1. Torn into shreds; ragged. 2. Having ragged clothes; dressed in tatters. 3. a. Shabby or dilapidated. b. Disordered or disrupted. and torn, wind-whipped and worn, were retired Sunday, the eve of Flag Day. Some 50 people gathered at the Elks Club lodge for patriotic speeches and songs before a detail of Boy Scouts doused the flags with diesel fuel and set them ablaze, the congressionally approved protocol for retiring the national banner. ``The purpose of this service is to honor our country's flag, to celebrate the anniversary of its birth and to recall the achievements attained beneath its folds,'' said Elks Exalted ex·alt·ed adj. 1. Elevated in rank, character, or status. 2. Lofty; sublime; noble: an exalted dedication to liberty. 3. Ruler David Coleman This page is about David Coleman the sportsman, for the academic visit David Coleman (academic) David Coleman, OBE (born 26 April 1926) is a former British sports commentator and TV presenter. . ``Our flag is at once a history, a declaration and a prophecy,'' he continued. ``It respects the American nation as it was at birth. It speaks for what it is today and it holds the opportunity for the future.'' On a grassy patch of ground at the Elks' Kuehner Drive club is a ``grave'' for retired flags, believed to be the only such site in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . Built two years ago, the grave is lined in concrete and contains the ashes of dozens of flags area residents have turned into the Elks for proper retirement. Gary Marshall of Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. , an Elk and retired Marine Corps colonel, told the crowd that the freedoms that the American flag represents have been paid for over and over again throughout history. ``We now retire this flag with respect and dignity . . . that it may return to the dust from which it came,'' Marshall said as the Marine Corps anthem played in the background. With that, two Boy Scouts unfurled the first of eight aging banners and set it ablaze. ``The Elks were the organizers of Flag Day,'' Coleman said afterward af·ter·ward also af·ter·wards adv. At a later time; subsequently. Adv. 1. afterward - happening at a time subsequent to a reference time; "he apologized subsequently"; "he's going to the store but he'll be back here . ``It's important to observe Flag Day, and to fly the flag and to retire it properly.'' CAPTION(S): 2 Photos PHOTO (1--Color) Elks Lodge members in Simi Valley host a flag burning ceremony on the eve On the Eve (Накануне in Russian) is the third novel by famous Russian writer Ivan Turgenev, best known for his short stories and the novel Fathers and Sons. of Flag Day. (2--Color) Boy Scout Jason Rhodes of Troop 642 lowers a flag that is being retired. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News |
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