By JOSHUA THOMAS

C-S-E Editor

FORT PLAIN — Last Thursday, a large, respectful crowd came out to Haslett Park to honor the symbol of our nation’s enduring freedom, fortitude and endurance — the American flag.

Though the flag has taken many forms since its birth, and while there are people who prior to Thursday’s service probably didn’t know the history of the flag, there likely wasn’t anybody present that didn’t understand what the American flag stands for.

The flag is a symbol that reminds us that we, as a nation, are one, united by freedom.

“Charity, justice, brotherly love and fidelity are exemplified in all Elks services,” it was stated during the Canajoharie-Fort Plain Elks Lodge 2621-organized program, and that was obvious from the moment the event started at 7 p.m., when the Fort Plain VFW 3275 Color Guard and members of the Canajoharie-Fort Plain Elks entered the park, walking in dignified rows, crossing Willett Street from the True Value Parking Lot, marching across the park, heads held high, to their places on the Haslett Park bandstand.

The event featured speakers and presentations from various Elks lodges, including Herkimer Lodge #1139, Ilion Lodge #1444, and Little Falls Lodge #42, along with  participation by Fort Plain’s Cub Scout Troop 61, with scouts from Little Falls and Oppenheim-Ephratah, who took part in a ceremony wherein each version of our nation’s flag was displayed and carried to the front of the Haslett Park bandstand, where the audience was able to truly absorb the evolution of our nation’s enduring symbol of freedom.

One of the most poignant portions of Thursday’s event came when Past District Deputy and Herkimer Elks Lodge member Charles Sullivan read a piece from the perspective of the flag. The piece began, “something lately has been bothering me.” The “flag” went on to speak about a time when “people lined up on both sides of the street to watch a parade. Naturally I was leading the parade, proudly waving in the breeze. When your father saw me coming, he immediately removed his hat and placed it against his left shoulder so that his hand was directly over his heart.”

“Remember?” asked the “flag”, continuing, “what happened?”

“Now, I don’t feel as proud as I used to when I come down your street and you just stand there with your hands in your pockets. Oh, I may get a small glance and then you look away, and I see children running around and playing and shouting. They don’t even know who I am or what I stand for.”

Town of Minden Supervisor Tom Quackenbush took to the stage late in the program to speak poignantly about not only the star of the event — the American flag — but also about community, the pride he takes in his, and how the two are intertwined.

Quackenbush explained that he was asked to march in the Rotterdam Flag Day parade last Monday by five different members of their Elks lodge, which currently contains 2,200 members — roughly 2,000 more than the Canajoharie-Fort Plain Lodge. “The one thing that was missingÖ” stated Quackenbush, continuing, “all five people that asked me to come that day all came over to me at the same time, and while they’re all members of the same lodge, they didn’t know each other.”

He continued, “it isn’t the size of your lodge — it’s the dedication, the beauty, and the things we do like this today. While their parade was large, and the hot dogs served were abundant, I guarantee you there wasn’t as many people there honoring the flag as there is here today.”

At the event’s conclusion, a sobering reminder was issued as TAPS played on dual trumpets by musicians performing a call and response from opposite ends of the park, that our flag hasn’t come to mean so much, to so many, without toil, bloodshed and loss. It is a symbol that, through struggle, has earned the respect it receives, and respect was paid in full by everybody present during last Thursday’s informative, moving ceremony.