The American flag is a majestic symbol.
With just 13 red and white stripes, and a blue square filled with 50 white stars, the rectangular piece of cloth manages to represent freedom, democracy, the pursuit of happiness, the American dream and a whole lot more.
As the aesthetic representation of everything the United States stands for, it’s only logical that the flag be treated with the utmost respect. As such, the stars and stripes come with a rulebook of sorts, an unwritten code of do’s and don’ts for handling the star-spangled banner.
Mary Werdal, the commander of American Legion Post 245, located in State College, places a lot of meaning in the American flag.
“I can sum up my feelings regarding our American Flag with a tag line my mom likes to use when talking about me – I’m her ‘Red, White, & Blue Navy Girl,’” Werdal says. “When I was younger, the Flag was everywhere, especially around July 4th, but I don’t think it was as important to me back then.”
After serving in the military and fighting for everything the flag stands for, Werdal gained a better appreciation for the symbol and what it represents to the country.
“Since serving in the United States Navy and now being involved with the American Legion, the flag has taken on new meaning for me,” she says. “When I see the American Flag flying it warms my heart and soul.
“It represents not just freedom and democracy, but it stands as a symbol of all the men and women who have served and are serving in our Armed Forces and those who paid the ultimate price while protecting the freedoms we hold so dear,” she adds.
With that in mind, Werdal recounts some of the rules that go into handling the flag, like the proper folding technique. The flag is folded a total of 13 times, finishing with a perfect triangle that only shows the stars. As Werdal says, there’s a meaning behind each individual fold. While the folding process wasn’t developed with these meanings in mind, they have since been ascribed to the ritual, and include things like honoring veterans, remembering the dead, and belief in God.
In addition to the folding ceremony, there are a set of rules for handling the flag, most of which exist in respect for its meaning. Werdal provides a list of flag etiquette procedures:
1. The flag should never be flown upside down, except as a distress signal.
2. The flag shouldn’t be used as drapery. If a platform needs to be draped with something patriotic, a bunting exists for this purpose.
3. The flag shouldn’t be used as an advertisement. It should not be used on anything that is meant to be thrown away.
4. The flag shouldn’t be part of any costume or athletic uniform. However, it can be used on a patch for military personnel, first responders, or members of patriotic organizations.
5. There shouldn’t be any mark, letter, words, number, insignia, and so on placed over the flag.
6. The flag should not be used as a receptacle for carrying or holding anything.
7. When the flag is lowered, it shouldn’t touch the ground or any other object, instead being “received by waiting hands and arms.” At that point, it should be folded ceremoniously (with the 13 folds mentioned above) for storage purposes.
8. The flag must be cleaned and mended when necessary.
9. When a flag is no longer fit to fly, it should be burned in a respectful manner.
When it comes to the eighth point on that list, State College-based Balfurd Cleaners emphasizes the proper cleaning of the American flag. As such, during the month of June — during which Flag Day takes place — the dry cleaning service cleans all flags for free.
“We do it every June, not only because Flag Day is in June, but also so people can prepare for the Fourth of July and have their flags clean,” says Monika Manter, vice president of operations. “We’ve been doing it for at least 15 years. People don’t clean their flags as often as they should, and they’ll come in with mold or grime on them. We are very careful with the flag and evaluate each one individually, so we can make sure red doesn’t bleed into white on the stripes and things like that.”
And when a flag is beyond saving, despite how sacrilegious it might sound, the proper way to dispose of it is through a burning ceremony. A few weeks ago, on Flag Day, the Elks Lodge held a flag retirement ceremony at the Pennsylvania Military Museum in Boalsburg. Jeff Kephart, the event organizer and a military veteran, explains the importance of the ceremony.
“That’s the only way you can properly dispose of a flag,” he says. “Ceremonies like this are important so people don’t forget about what it took for us to raise the original flag over 200 years ago. There were battles. It didn’t come freely and it isn’t easy to maintain.”
With the Fourth of July just around the corner, American flags are sure to get a lot of use in State College as celebrations get underway. These simple rules make it easy to give the flag the respect it deserves.
