TIME TO RETIRE TATTERED AMERICAN FLAGS.

Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY 

Odds and ends from around the Valley:

If you've been wondering what to do with that aging or torn U.S. flag that you've replaced with a new one, this is the weekend to give it a proper burial.

Canoga Park Elks Lodge 2190 will hold its annual Flag Retirement Ceremony at noon Sunday at 20925 Osborne St.

``A lot of people fly the flag and are dedicated to it, but they don't know how to respectfully retire it,'' says Erick Lace, the lodge's exalted ruler.

``No one else is doing it, so the Elks have taken the job on.''

For this community-minded lodge, the hourlong ceremony has become one of the most popular events for the public to attend, particularly children.

``We also have a display of historical flags on hand to show schoolkids how the U.S. flag has developed through the years,'' Lace said.

As they have for the past six years, members of the Van Nuys/Reseda Elks Lodge, and Boy Scout Troop 99 will help retire the old flags brought in by the public.

Here's a classy thank you to the memory of former President Ronald Reagan from the clients at New Horizons, a nonprofit organization in North Hills that provides services to adults with developmental disabilities.

They've drawn and signed a giant sympathy card for Nancy Reagan that will be delivered today to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley.

They haven't forgotten that it was then-Gov. Reagan who signed legislation in 1969 allowing nonprofit, community-based organizations to receive state funds for support of services to individuals with developmental disabilities.

As Reagan said at the time, ``I want to assure that the mentally retarded develop to the fullest extent to which they are capable.''

Let's hear it for our team of wheelchair athletes from the Sepulveda VA, who are leaving this weekend to compete in the 24th annual National Veterans Wheelchair Games in St. Louis, Mo.

Every year we send a team, and every year they come back with the lion's share of gold medals in events such as wheelchair races, bowling, billiards, and teams sports like basketball and softball.

``We stopped counting years ago the number of medals our guys have brought home,'' said coach Steven Gates, a kinseotherapist at Sepulveda.

``Our guys work hard all year for this event, and really look forward to competing against and making new friends with wheelchair athletes from all over the country.''

So let's do a little cheerleading from the sidelines for the Valley team of James Bryant, Scott Zemer, Pat Kilmartin, David Briggs, and Larry Foster. I'll let you know how they do when they return.

And finally, the donation numbers keep getting bigger for Operation Gratitude, which started in the Encino living room of Carolyn Blashek at the start of the Iraq war.

It was one woman who wanted to send care packages to those troops overseas who had no one writing them. Since then, more than 600 volunteers have joined her.

Over the Memorial Day weekend, at the Army National Guard Armory in Van Nuys, they packed and mailed 10,175 care packages to the troops, bringing the total to 18,471.

``There were veterans organizations, like the Women's Marine Association, spouses, fiances and parents of deployed troops, and soldiers recently returned from Iraq helping us,'' Carolyn said.

``The energy and enthusiasm in that armory was infectious. There is simply no way to adequately thank every person, organization and company that contributed to the success of the Memorial Day weekend drive.''

If you want more information on Operation Gratitude, go to the group's Web site, www.opgratitude.com.

Dennis McCarthy, [phone]

dennis.mccarthy(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

Canoga Park Elks Lodge 2190 members, from left, Vern Swenson, Robert Livingston, Erick Lace and Jerry Hubbard, will participate in an annual flag burial ceremony on Sunday.

Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer