Area veterans attend 'first of its kind' flag retirement ceremony

May 21—WATERLOO — Randy Miller has been working on a project he believes is the first of its kind in the state of Iowa.

An active member of AMVETS Post 31 in Evansdale, Miller spearheaded an effort to retire U.S. flags in a healthier and environmentally safe way: by burying them.

The AMVETS Post, along with other veterans and community members, attended the burial of more than 500 retired American flags on Friday at Elmwood Cemetery.

"Seeing it take off — it's kinda heartfelt," Miller said. He's been doing flag retirement ceremonies for 50 years.

U.S. flags are typically retired through a burning ceremony. Miller said retirement by fire has been the process for more than 100 years, but flags in years passed were usually made of cotton. Now, flags are made from synthetic materials such as polyester and nylon.

He said when those materials are burned it causes huge plumes of black smoke that affect ceremony attendees' lungs as well as the surrounding wildlife.

Even after burning, the remains of the flags are "hard as coal," Miller said, and then sometimes thrown away.

"To throw it in the garbage doesn't seem practical or wise to me," he said.

The ceremony started with the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem, led by Bill Quibell. Miller then explained how the flags are folded for burial and what the shape means.

He said the triangular fold represents revolutionaries, by mimicking the shape of their hats — such as the one Paul Revere wore. The three sides also stand for many things such as life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; the flags' colors; the three branches of government; the Declaration of Independence, U.S.Constitution and Bill of Rights; and the Holy Trinity of the Bible.

After the explanation, a prayer was read and the Honor Guard performed a three-volley salute, which is a ceremonial act at military funerals. "Taps" was then played. The spent shells from the salute were also buried with the flags.

The burial plot is located at the front entrance of Elmwood Cemetery. It is marked by a monument, donated by Hagarty Monument of Waterloo, and marble posts donated by the cemetery. The cemetery also donated the plot for the buried flags.

Next year, Miller said, Mt. Olivet Cemetery, located along West Fourth Street, will be the site of the retirement ceremony. The cemetery donated a vault to be put inside a mausoleum.

Miller said anyone who wants to donate a flag for retirement can do so by visiting the post at 706 Colleen Ave. At the post there is a drop box for flags. Flags that are retired are deemed unserviceable due to age, wear and tear.

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