Meridian Star
Published: June 10, 2006 01:06 am
Rolling Thunder donates POW/MIA flag to county
By Cathy Hayes / staff writer
Rolling Thunder, a motorcycle riders’ group that works to keep the sacrifice of prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action in the minds of the public, presented a POW/MIA flag to county officials Friday at the Raymond P. Davis Courthouse Annex.
The presentation came less than a week after the Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors granted the group’s request to fly the flag over the courthouse on patriotic holidays
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Henry “Thumper” Yandle, administrative officer of the local chapter of Rolling Thunder, presented the flag to Tony Green, Lauderdale County administrator, during a brief ceremony at the Raymond P. Davis Courthouse Annex.
It will first be raised at the courthouse on Monday, before Flag Day on June 14.
“We are honored to fly this symbol to recognize the POWs and MIAs whom we have lost in battle,” Green said.
The flag represents more than 85,000 men and women who were taken prisoner, or are still missing, dating back to Wor ld War I.
The flag’s design is symbolic. The black represents the grief of soldiers’ families and friends. The guard tower represents the prisons where POWs were held. The barbed wire is for the pain soldiers have suffered; white is for the purity of their belief in their country; and the silhouette is of an actual soldier held prisoner.
The new POW/MIA national patches include a red teardrop to represent the blood and tears shed.
A bill introduced in the state Legislature by Sen. Videt Carmichael, R-Meridian, authorizes counties to fly the POW/MIA flag. Senate Bill 2432 calls for the flag to be flown on Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, National POW/MIA Recognition Day and Veterans Day.
HONORING SACRIFICE
Tony Green, left, Lauderdale County administrator, accepts a Prisoners of War/Missing in Action flag Friday from Henry “Thumper” Yandle of Rolling Thunder Inc. The flag, representing POWs and MIAs, will fly over the Lauderdale County Courthouse on patriotic holidays. None/PHOTO BY EMILY ANGLIN / THE MERIDIAN STAR
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