Day of the flag
<p>Roy Higgs, 82, a Korean War veteran, displays his Star-Spangled Banner, or 15-star American flag, with its certificate of authenticity at his Coeur d’Alene home on Thursday.</p>
COEUR d'ALENE - Often overlooked, Flag Day, which is Sunday, is held in high regard by Roy Higgs.
The Coeur d'Alene veteran proudly displays the American flag with 15 stars and stripes in his front yard.
"It was flown over Fort McHenry (National Monument), which is where I took my oath of office in January 1950," the 82 year-old said softly. "The 15 stars came after Vermont and Kentucky were added to the original 13 colonies. It's important to me. I really enjoy the history of the flag."
The 15-star flag waved over Fort McHenry when the British Navy attacked on the night of Sept. 13, 1814.
Francis Scott Key, who wrote "The Star-Spangled Banner" national anthem, was a hostage on the British frigate "Surprise." All through the night he watched the gallant defense of Fort McHenry. When dawn broke, he saw the flag still waving over the ramparts.
From his back deck, Higgs, who served in the Marines during the Korean War, flies the 50-star Old Glory flag. Higgs served with "Baltimore's Own" - the 11th Engineer Battalion - as an electronic supply clerk at a Naval shipping yard in San Francisco.
"We sent electronics to Japan and Korea during the Korean War," he said. "I didn't go overseas, but I was proud to serve. I always went where they sent me."
Flag Day, which is not an official federal holiday, is celebrated on June 14 each year. It commemorates the adoption of the United States flag, which happened on June 14, 1777, by resolution of the Second Continental Congress.
President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation in 1916 that officially established June 14 as Flag Day. National Flag Day was established by an act of Congress in 1949.
Higgs, who has been a member of the Marines Corps League's Pappy Boyington Detachment in Coeur d'Alene for more than 10 years, keeps a neat scrapbook of flag history and his years of service. The date of when he took his military oath is on a tattoo on his left arm as a continual reminder of his commitment to serve his country.
"Freedom and love of country," said Higgs, referring to what the American flags mean to him. "They mean everything to me. That's why I have all of this. It's my life."