As it has done for several years, American Legion Post 255 in Deltona has observed Flag Day, June 14, with the ceremonial disposal of faded, torn and worn-out American flags. Legionnaires and friends gathered at Veterans Memorial Park for retirement of flags no longer deemed suitable for display.
The legionnaires dispose of the flags by burning them in a somber process intended to show dignity and respect for Old Glory.
American Legion Post 255 Cmdr. Pedro Rosario said his post ceremonially disposed of approximately 50 dilapidated flags.
June 14 is the date in 1777 when the Continental Congress adopted the Stars and Stripes as the official flag of the newly independent United States of America. That first flag, which set the pattern for the flag flown today, had seven red stripes and six white stripes, with a field of blue in the upper left corner. Within the field of blue was a circle of 13 stars, one for each of the states that had formerly been British colonies. Since the creation of the first Stars and Stripes, reportedly the work of a seamstress named Betsy Ross, the flag has taken on 37 more stars to represent the 50 states.
