A field of flags

Thousands of commuters each day pass by a field on Church Street in Lexington, Tenn., where 400 American flags wave. American Legion Post 77 Adjutant Lanny Culver said that every day the flags fly, someone stops to take photos or walk through and read the dedications.

This is the third year Post 77 has spearheaded the Field of Flags. Each year, Culver said, they’ve had more dedications than flags in the field — despite increasing the number of flags from 200 to 300 and then 300 to 400. This year, there are 410 dedications honoring veterans.

“It’s a task in a town of 7,000 getting 400 dedications year after year,” Culver said. “For a town of 7,000 or so people, it’s crazy. There’s not 30,000 in the whole county.”

The Legion post worked with community members to put the flags up on Oct. 29, and they will fly until Nov. 19. On Veterans Day, there will be a ceremony in the field with the post's honor guard.

People can dedicate flags, and in addition to the laminated dedication on each flag pole in the field, they receive a high-quality, American-made flag. The post orders these flags through Emblem Sales, then uses their monetary rewards from participation in the Flag Rewards program to support adding flag displays to all the county cemeteries. This year, the post placed a 25-foot flag, pole and solar light, along with the necessary infrastructure, at four cemeteries throughout the county. Culver said he estimates money from this year’s Field of Flags will mean at least four more cemetery displays.

The flag display has quickly become a popular town tradition.

“It’s just a great thing for this little small town, and the community wants to be a part of it,” Culver said. He added that more than 50 people showed up to help, including local Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts and a high school JROTC. “They come to us wanting to be part of it.”

Staff at local restaurants ask when the flags will go up. The tellers at the bank tell him it’s the most patriotic thing the community does. After the flags were put away last year, a woman bought five dedications for this year — she didn’t want to miss it, Culver said.

“It just makes me swell up with pride. It’s just amazing and people stop from miles around. They’re passing through town and all of a sudden you see this,” he said. “It’s right on the main drag, there’s 25,000 cars a day that go by there and see it. It’s the main way through this area for several counties around. A lot of people are seeing it from a lot of places.”

The Field of Flags has helped make Post 77 a top 10 Emblem Sales Flags Rewards program post in 2015 and 2016.

“We sell these flags throughout the year, people wanting to buy a flag, and people know we’re the place to come to get it,” Culver said.