This tattered flag has been flying in the city for three weeks, according to Eric Steins, a Huntington resident and retired veteran who served in the United States Navy for 20 years. (Photo submitted by Eric Steins)
WESTFIELD – “I’ve been working in town for 14 years. I drive every street in this town, and this is the worst I’ve ever seen. It’s a disgrace to the United States.”
So says Erik Steins, a Huntington resident and retired veteran who served in the United States Navy for 20 years, referring to a tattered American flag that is currently flying above the ball field at Paper Mill Elementary School.
“The last three or four weeks, but this ones been up for a long time,” he said of the amount of time he’s been aware of the haggard stars and stripes. “There’s no footprints going to this flag at all. It should be taken down or not flown at all, instead of being flown like that, especially on public property.”
Steins, who works for Asplundh Tree Expert Company and with Westfield Gas and Electric, is in fact disgusted by a number of flags flying all over the city that he said have seen better days.
“I’ve seen three in the last week,” he said.
The lifelong hilltown resident takes the flag that flies at his home down every night, and is miffed at the number of unsightly city flags, because the red, white and blue are more than just colors to him.
“A person that serves, they write a check to the United States for their life, they’re sworn to protect the flag of the United States,” he said. “That’s why we do it. We gave our lives to protect the United States so that people have the rights and the freedoms they have here.”
Donald Wielgus, a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and member of the city’s Marine Corps League, couldn’t agree more.
“A flag that’s tattered should be replaced,” said Wielgus, who is also a member of Vietnam Veterans Chapter 219, American Legion 124, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars 1847. “Our organizations are here to serve the people.”
Wielgus said that there was once a patrol that went around the city spotting well-worn flags and alerting their owners of their condition, but he said the practice has been discontinued.
“About five years ago,” he said of the last time such a patrol made the rounds. “But people were getting upset.”
Steins explained the procedure for retiring a tattered flag.
“You fold it, bring it to the Marine Corps League, put it in the burial box, and they’ll give it the proper ceremony,” he said.
“There are two places you can deposit a flag,” Wielgus added. “There is an old type mail box in front of the Marine Corps League on Elm Street, a box at City Hall, or you can give it to Bob Callahan at the Veteran’s Office.”
He stated that every year the American Legion holds a ceremony which gives old flags their due respect.
“During the ceremony, there may be 100 flags retired,” he said. “But in a year, there may be 500, most of which are from the city.”
For both of these proud and patriotic veterans, the sight of so many blighted flags is more than just an eyesore.
“It tells me that they don’t care,” Steins added of the fliers of the decrepit flags. “And if they don’t care they shouldn’t fly the flag at all.”
Not all veterans share this sentiment, however.
“When a flag is weathered, people don’t just want to throw it away in the garbage,” said Joe Mitchell, an officer in the City of Westfield’s Veterans Service Department. “People want to do the right thing and give it a proper ceremony.”
Mitchell, who doubles as the Assistant Scoutmaster for Westfield’s Boy Scout Troop 821 after having served as Scoutmaster for a number of years, said that there is a misconception about Veterans Services.
“A lot of people think we’re the ‘flag police’,” he said. “But thats not true. Everyone in the city — Police, Fire, the airport, the schools — has their own flags.”
In addition to the Marine Corps League, Mitchell said that his own scouts do different flag collections throughout the year.
“One of our scouts, John Huntley, did a flag collection for his Eagle Scout project,” he said, adding that Wielgus’ estimation of the amount of flags retired by city residents every year is accurate.
“That’s fair,” said Mitchell of the 500 flag per year quote. “People fly their flags all the time, all year round.”
