Photo by Brent Addleman

The Ridgway Elks paid homage to the American flag and everything for which it stands last evening during a ceremony held at the club's headquarters along South Street.

By Brent Addleman
Editor

The Ridgway Elks paid homage to the American flag and everything for which it stands last evening during a ceremony held at the club's headquarters along South Street.
A new 40-foot flag pole and flag were erected recently, and with the help of the Honor Detail, the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, members of the organization gathered for an outdoors presentation under a slate grey sky to pay homage to America's symbol of freedom.
Sarah Hill welcomed the small crowd that gathered for the ceremony before handing the microphone over to Bill Evans, who spoke of the travels of the American flag throughout the history of the United States of American from the Revolutionary War to the War of 1812 to the Civil War to both world wars and the current military efforts overseas in the war on terror.
Guest speaker Sheriff Jeff Krieg admitted he was honored to give the speech and read from a letter from a veteran of the civil war that was killed in the Battle of Bull Run.
Members of the Honor Guard stood by at attention, saluting the flag during the pledge of allegiance.
Honor Guard Ron Dixon took the duty of lowering and raising the flag, along with the help of a member from the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, as Honor Guard member Paul Gerg played "Taps" on his bugle standing near the Ridgway Elks sign.
Exalted Ruler Dale Nearing spoke of the importance of attaining a new flag pole and the special feature it possesses.
"We just put it in, I believe, we sat it the end of July," Nearing said. "The eagle on top is actually a weathervane – it swirls all the way around. The whole flag, when the wind blows, the flag goes with it. It is all together, so it turns."
The new flag pole, towering over the lawn on the South Mill Avenue side of the organization, was a much-needed replacement.
"The other one, we had quite awhile," Nearing said. "It was made out of piping. It served its purpose for many years, but it was starting to tilt. It needed repair. We just decided to replace it with a nice one. It's gonna last a lot longer, that aluminum one. It is self-contained. Everything is inside.
Not only does the flag represent the country, but it now represents the group effort that took place within the member of the Elks organization to get the pole into place.
"All the members dug the hole for it, put it up," said Sarah Hill of the Elks. "All members from their different businesses got the lift to get up there – which was entertaining that Sunday morning."
Elks member Bill Evans echoed Hill's statement.
"A lot of our members put our heart and soul in raising the flag, the flag pole and getting it put in place," Evans said. "They are the members that really make things happen around here. They did a good job. We wanted to get a more prominent flag for our community and we've got it. The Elks is continuing to reach out to the community.
Krieg was pleased to see the long-time organization show its patriotism.
"I perfectly glad to have been here to support the Elks, my fraternal brothers and sisters," Elk County's sheriff said. "Any time we can promote patriotism and a devotion to our country, that is a good thing."