April 06, 2017

Patriotism in every classroom

By The American Legion
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Patriotism in every classroom
Patriotism in every classroom

Legion Post 91 in Ohio donates more than 30 U.S. flags to local school.

After renovations at Strongsville High School in Ohio were completed, teachers at the school noticed something was missing in some of the classrooms: American flags. And the school also knew who to contact to rectify that situation.

Reaching out to Albert E. Baesel American Legion Post 91 in nearby Berea resulted in more than 30 flags being donated by the post to the school to not only provide flags for classrooms, but also replace other flags that were in need of retiring.

It was a Legion family effort, as the post, Auxiliary unit, Sons squadron and Legion Riders chapter contributed. “All four units of our post kicked in and made the purchase for the flags and the attachments to mount them in the classrooms,” Post 91 Commander Jeff Myers said. “That’s what we’re all about. We’ve been doing that for years. We do it for the preschools. We do the exterior flags at some schools. That’s just what we do.”

The post is active in promoting Americanism in its community, including working with local schools. “We had a relationship with the school already,” Myers said. “We’ve had an ongoing relationship with the Berea schools and have supplied flags, but not in such a big order.”

The school knew who to call to see about getting help. “We had had a long relationship with American Legion 91, and I reached out to them to see if they might know anybody who would help us provide flags for classrooms," Strongsville Assistance Principal Brian Tumino told Cleveland 19 News. "To my surprise and excitement the contact there told me they'd be willing to help in that endeavor."

Myers said the symbolism of the flag meant the post didn’t have to think twice before donating the flags. "This is one of the schools in which we do Americanism testing, and they still do the Pledge of Allegiance every morning on their announcements,” he said. “It’s one of the few school districts around that still does the pledge in high school. In this day and age, that doesn’t happen everywhere. It felt kind of unique.”

 

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