All Star Flags August, 2011 | All Star Flags - Part 3

American Flags and New York Flags to fly at half-staff Wednesday, August 17th, in the state of New York in honor of five Fort Drum soldiers who died in Kandahar province, Afghanistan on August 11.

According to the officer of the governor:  Army Sergeant Edward J. Frank II, of Yonkers, NY, Army Specialist Jameel T. Freeman, of Baltimore, MD, Army Specialist Patrick L. Lay II, of Fletcher, NC, Army Private 1st Class Rueben J. Lopez, of Williams, CA, and Army Specialist Jordan M. Morris, of Stillwater, OK died of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle.

 The soldiers were all assigned to the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, stationed at Fort Drum, NY.

Hats off to the newest nation South Sudan as its flag was ceremonially raised for the first time yesterday.  The flag-raising event, attended by African Union member heads of state, marked a historic turning point for the people of South Sudan.  South Sudan was admitted to the AU as its newest member on July 27, 2011.  South Sudan was admitted to the United Nations (UN) on July 14th, 2011 as the 193rd member.

American Flags and Arkansas Flags to fly at half-staff Tuesday, August 16th, in the state of Arkansas in honor of Air Force Tech Sergeant John W. Brown and Navy Master Chief Tommy Ratzlaff.

Tech. Sergeant Brown sacrificed his life when his CH-47 Chinook helicopter was shot down while on a mission to rescue a U.S. Army Ranger unit from enemy fire. A member of the U.S. Navy Seals Special Ops Assault Team, he was currently serving as a paramedic in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron in Pope Field, North Carolina.

Master Chief Ratzlaff was a highly decorated combat veteran of 12 deployments.  Ratzlaff sacrificed his life when his CH-47 Chinook helicopter was shot down while on a mission to rescue a U.S. Army Ranger unit from enemy fire. He was a member of the U.S. Navy SEALs Special Ops Assault Team, out of Virginia Beach, Virginia.

American Flags and Connecticut Flags to fly at half-staff in the state of Connecticut in honor of Sergeant Edward J. Frank II.

American Flags and Maine Flags to fly at half-staff Tuesday, August 16th, in the state of Maine in remembrance of the Honorable Dan Gwadosky.

According to a release from the office of the Governor of Maine:

“Dan held a long and successful political career for the State of Maine. He served 18 years representing his hometown of Fairfield in the Maine House of Representatives from 1979-1996. Dan was elected Assistant Majority Leader in 1986 and House Majority Leader in 1988 before being elected Maine’s 92nd Speaker of the House. In 1997 he was elected Maine’s 46th Secretary of State and served as President of the National Association of Secretaries of State from 2002-2003. Dan most recently held the position of Director of the Bureau of Alcoholic Beverage and Lottery Operations and served this past year as Chairman of the National Alcoholic Beverage Control Association (NABCA).”

American Flags and Virginia Flags to fly at half-staff Tuesday, August 16th through Monday, August 22nd in the commonwealth of Virginia in honor of those who were killed in the Afghanistan helicopter tragedy on August 6, 2011.

Servicemen assigned to an East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare unit:

1. Lt. Cmdr. (SEAL) Jonas B. Kelsall, 32, of Shreveport, La.
2. Master Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Louis J. Langlais, 44, of Santa Barbara, Calif.
3. Senior Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Thomas A. Ratzlaff, 34, of Green Forest, Ark.
4. Senior Chief Petty Officer (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist) Kraig M. Vickers, 36, of Kokomo, Hawaii
5. Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Brian R. Bill, 31, of Stamford, Conn.
6. Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) John W. Faas, 31, of Minneapolis, Minn.
7. Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Kevin A. Houston, 35, of West Hyannisport, Mass.
8. Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Matthew D. Mason, 37, of Kansas City, Mo.
9. Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Stephen M. Mills, 35, of Fort Worth, Texas
10. Chief Petty Officer (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist/Diver) Nicholas H. Null, 30, of Washington, W.Va.
11. Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Robert J. Reeves, 32, of Shreveport, La.
12. Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Heath M. Robinson, 34, of Detroit, Mich.
13. Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL) Darrik C. Benson, 28, of Angwin, Calif.
14. Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL/Parachutist) Christopher G. Campbell, 36, of Jacksonville, N.C.
15. Petty Officer 1st Class (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist) Jared W. Day, 28, of Taylorsville, Utah
16. Petty Officer 1st Class (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist) John Douangdara, 26, of South Sioux City, Neb.
17. Petty Officer 1st Class (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist) Michael J. Strange, 25, of Philadelphia, Pa.
18. Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL/Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist) Jon T. Tumilson, 35, of Rockford, Iowa
19. Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL) Aaron C. Vaughn, 30, of Stuart, Fla.
20. Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL) Jason R. Workman, 32, of Blanding, Utah.

Servicemen assigned to West Coast-based Naval Special Warfare unit:

1. Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL) Jesse D. Pittman, 27, of Ukiah, Calif.
2. Petty Officer 2nd Class (SEAL) Nicholas P. Spehar, 24, of Saint Paul, Minn.

Servicemen assigned to the 135^th and 138th Aviation Regiments:

1. Chief Warrant Officer David R. Carter, 47, of Centennial, Colo; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment (General Support Aviation Battalion), Aurora, Colo.
2. Chief Warrant Officer Bryan J. Nichols, 31, of Hays, Kan.; assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment (General Support Aviation Battalion), New Century, Kan.
3. Sgt. Patrick D. Hamburger, 30, of Lincoln, Neb.; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment (General Support Aviation Battalion), Grand Island, Neb.
4. Sgt. Alexander J. Bennett, 24, of Tacoma, Wash; assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment (General Support Aviation Battalion), New Century, Kan.; and
5. Spc. Spencer C. Duncan, 21, of Olathe, Kan.; assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment (General Support Aviation Battalion), New Century, Kan.

Servicemen assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, Pope Field, N.C.:

1. Tech. Sgt. John W. Brown, 33, of Tallahassee, Fla.
2. Staff Sgt. Andrew W. Harvell, 26, of Long Beach, Calif.
3. Tech. Sgt. Daniel L. Zerbe, 28, of York Pa.

American Flags and Washington State Flags to fly at half-staff Tuesday, August 16th, in the state of Washington in memory of US Army Sgt Alexander J. Bennett.

Sgt. Bennett died with 29 other service members August 6, in Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when their helicopter crashed.

American Flags and Louisiana Flags to fly at half-staff through Sunday, August 14th in the state of Louisiana in honor of Lt. Com. Jonas Kelsall and Chief Petty Officer Robert James Reeves.

Lt. Com. Jonas Kelsall and Chief Petty Officer Robert James Reeves were among 30 servicemen, a civilian interpreter and seven Afghan commandos killed when their helicopter was shot down last Saturday by insurgents in eastern Agfhanistan.

Labor Day is just around the corner, so be thinking about how to decorate your back yard for that holiday barbecue!  But ever wonder why Labor Day, always the first Monday in September, is the holiday to gather friends and family around the grill for fun and food?  Originally Labor Day was created in celebration of the achievements of American workers as the “workingman’s holiday.”  A street parade was held with much flag waving and fanfare, followed by a festival held for the workers and their families.  Today we still have our own festival of food and fun to pay tribute on Labor Day, so break out your pleated fans and American flags and get those grills fired up!

American Flags and Kentucky flags to fly at half-staff Thursday, August 11th, in the commonwealth of Kentucky in honor of Army Pfc. William F. Stehlin.

According to the Department of Defense, Army Pfc. William F. Stehlin of Dayton, Ky., went missing on Nov. 20, 1944 near Süggerath while his unit conducted a largely successful offensive to capture towns in Western Germany. In 1951, after an extensive search, his remains were determined unrecoverable by U.S. Army Graves Registration personnel.  Stehlin was a member of the 333rd Infantry Regiment, 84th Infantry Division.

In 2009, a German citizen digging in a wooded area near Süggerath, discovered a grave with the remains of two individuals, military-related equipment and identification tags.  Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command laboratory also used dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.