BY DEBBIE PAGE
The community is invited to the third annual Walk of Heroes Flag Installation Ceremony on Friday, May 16, at 10 a.m.
The event will begin with the Toast of Honor motorcycle group bringing in the first flag. Flags will be distributed to the Troutman Elementary School children, who will stand in front of the school to greet the riders. Then the riders will move to the greenway area in front of Town Hall for the first flag installation ceremony.
Bill Cox, club member and leader of the Toast of Honor group, will provide an overview of the first flag’s journey over the past year. Troutman Mayor Teross Young will also make a few comments. The Rev. William S. “Bill” Troutman, representing presenting sponsor Bunch Johnson Funeral Home, will plant the first flag.
Following the initial ceremony, the remaining 300 flags will be installed on both sides of the Richardson Greenway, where they will remain until Memorial Day.
Community members can purchase a Walk of Heroes Tribute Flag to honor or remember a loved one who has served in the United States Armed Forces. Each flag will be proudly displayed along the greenway in downtown Troutman for the duration of the event, from Armed Forces Day (May 16) to Memorial Day (May 26), as part of a moving tribute to America’s military heroes.
Each flag will include a personalized tag listing the hero’s name, branch of service, and the sponsor’s name (person who purchased the flag). The cost is $35. Proceeds support the continuation of this annual tribute.
At the conclusion of the event, purchasers can pick up the flag following the Memorial Day Ceremony at Troutman ESC Park on May 26, at 11 a.m. This flag serves as a lasting keepsake and a meaningful way to carry the tribute beyond the event.
Flags can be purchased online at https://troutmanwalkofheroes.com/products/walk-of-heroes-flag and picked up on Monday, May 26, after the Memorial Day Ceremony.
In-person flag sales will be in the gravel parking lot beside Troutman Town Hall (400 N. Eastway Drive in front of the Parks and Recreation house) on the dates below:
♦ May 16 – 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
♦ May 17 – 9 a.m. to 12 noon
♦ May 18 – 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
♦ May 19-23 – 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
♦ May 24 – 9 a.m. to 12 noon
MEMORIAL DAY CEREMONY
The Troutman Exchange will present a Memorial Day Ceremony on Monday, May 26, at 11 a.m. at the Troutman ESC Park pavilion, marking the conclusion of the Walk of Heroes tribute.
The community is invited to attend this solemn gathering as a time to come together in remembrance and gratitude for the brave men and women who have served and sacrificed for America.
At the ceremony, Cotton Ketchie will present the invocation, followed by the South Iredell Marine Corps JROTC Drill Team presenting the colors and Crystal McIntosh singing the National Anthem.
Bunch-Johnson Funeral Home will be recognized as the presenting sponsor again this year, with their representative saying a few words. The guest speaker will be Jim Kiger from Richard’s Coffee Shop, a veterans’ advocacy organization, in Mooresville.
The ceremony will conclude with the Statesville American Legion Post presenting a 21-gun salute and taps. The Troutman Fire Department will display a huge American Flag from its ladder truck, and the Fraternal Order of Police will provide hot dogs for the guests.
Following the ceremony, attendees who purchased flags in memory or honor of loved ones may pick up their flags. The local Girl Scout Troop will assist with flag retrieval from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Additional dates for flag pick-up are May 27 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon, May 29 from 4 to 7 p.m., and May 31 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon in the gravel lot beside Town Hall (400 N. Eastway Drive in front of the Parks and Recreation house).