Honor Veterans, and Others, by Sponsoring a Flag in Draper Memorial Park Field of Flags

MILFORD, MA—Citizens for Milford is partnering with the Milford Corps of the Salvation Army to organize the “Draper Memorial Park Field of Flags,” a tribute acknowledging the service and sacrifice of veterans and active military personnel. They'll do this by creating a display of American flags to be placed in Draper Memorial Park on five patriotic holidays each year starting this Veterans Day, and any area citizens can help them achieve the goal.

All area citizens are invited to sponsor a 3′ x 5′ American flag to fly on a 10′ staff in Draper Memorial Park for a $60 donation. Each flag will include a yellow ribbon with an attached card naming the person being honored, the honoree’s military branch and years of service, and the sponsor’s name. Sponsors can choose to honor a veteran (alive or deceased), an active member of the military, or all the nation’s veterans.

The $60 donation sponsors a flag in Draper Park for all five of the following patriotic holidays: Veterans Day 2016 and Memorial Day, Flag Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day 2017.

Field of Flags Chairperson Peter Scandone said in a press release, “Our goal for the flag display is to honor the heroism of our many local veterans and active duty service members. Whether they served in war or peace, what matters is that they served our country for the principles of peace and freedom. We encourage members of our community not only to consider sponsoring a flag, but also to visit the Field of Flags this Veterans Day and read the names of our veterans and active service men and women whose loved ones have chosen to honor them in this tangible way.”

For more information on how to sponsor a flag, visit the Citizens for Milford site.

For this first year of the “Draper Memorial Park Field of Flags” project, the number of flags placed in the park will be limited to one hundred. Citizens for Milford hopes to increase this number in subsequent years. All flags and staffs will remain the property of The Salvation Army of Milford.

Located at the intersection of Congress Street and Main Street, Draper Memorial Park is located in downtown Milford. The park features monuments that list the names of veterans who served during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Standing tall in the park is the statue of General William Franklin Draper by sculptor Daniel Chester French, whose work also includes the massive marble statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Photo via Shutterstock