Volunteers needed on Saturday morning, May 24, to help place flags on veterans’ graves for Memorial Day
Volunteers are needed next Saturday, May 24, to help place American flags on the graves of U.S. Military veterans buried in the Breckenridge Cemetery.
Retired U.S. Navy veteran Jim Merson and Les Strickland, the Stephens County Veterans Service Officer and a retired U.S. Marine, will be at the cemetery at 8 a.m. Saturday, May 24, to put out the flags for the Memorial Day weekend. Merson has been heading up the project for more than 10 years, and often Strickland and his wife, Sherry, have showed up as volunteers. Now that Strickland is the SCVSO, he’s involved in organizing the event.
There are about 900 veterans buried in the Breckenridge Cemetery, and most years 20 or more volunteers gather to help place a flag on each of their graves to honor their service to the country. The project takes about 60 to 90 minutes, depending on how many volunteers show up, Merson said. He will be on hand to show volunteers how to identify the graves of veterans and how to place the flags.
Then, on Tuesday, Strickland and Merson will be back at the cemetery to remove the flags to be used again next year, and they’ll appreciate any volunteer help then, as well.
If the ground at the cemetery is dry on Saturday, it may be a little difficult to post the flags in the ground. Merson has steel “hole punchers” fashioned from rebar that — with a little effort — can make a place for the wooden flag sticks to go. Experienced volunteers often bring their own cordless power tools to actually drill holes into the soil.
To assist with the project, just show up at the Breckenridge Cemetery, 1301 E. Elliott St., at 8 a.m. Saturday, May 24. The two retired U.S. military veterans will be happy to have your help.
In addition to the project of placing the flags at the cemetery, there will be a Memorial Day ceremony on the Stephens County Courthouse lawn on Monday, May 26. More details to come on that.
Cutline, top photo: Local Scouts help put flags on the the graves of veterans in the Breckenridge Cemetery last year for Memorial Day. This year, volunteers are needed to help again on Saturday, May 24. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
