Memorial Day in Murfreesboro: 15th annual ‘Field of Flags’ wraps up weekend events
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WKRN) – In Murfreesboro, a 15th annual Memorial Day recognition came to an end on Monday.
This Memorial Day, 434 flags were proudly displayed in a field next to First United Methodist Church, 390 of which were dedicated to former service members.
“The field’s lit at night, so you can come at any time, day and night, and walk through the field and take pictures, read the names on the tags,” explained Tracey Kennedy, event chair for the Freedom Trail Foundation. “A lot of people come and kneel at the flag and pray. It’s a very emotional event. We had some veterans visit us from the veterans home (Sunday), and one of them just sat in his wheelchair and cried as he stared at the flags.”
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At the conclusion of this weekend-long event, families take the sponsored flags home with them. In other cases, the flags are displayed at businesses, or even given to a family’s chosen hero, allowing the tribute to carry on past the holiday. One local family has made it a tradition to visit the site every year, in a personal tribute they say is a no-brainer.
“They’re the most patriotic of all of us, obviously,” said Colt Harris, whose grandfather served in the Korean War. “And to come and remember them and to teach our kids to remember, and to just understand these sacrifices that had to be given for us to enjoy the freedoms we do today. If you forget history, you’re doomed to repeat it. So it’s a good time to remember…hopefully, they (his kids) will understand what they have and appreciate it, and act like it, and hopefully in the future, vote like it.”
This year, the tribute event partnered with five local Boys and Girl Scout troops, providing youth a chance to earn rewards (i.e. fun trips) for volunteering. More than that, they get the chance to learn the importance of this holiday themselves.
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“I think that we do a good job here teaching our youth and having them remember what the day is actually for,” said Kennedy. “Personally, I have a picture of my son in the very first ‘Healing Field,’ (when) he was a year old. He is 16 (now) and here this year!”
While their field draws in all kinds of crowds, Kennedy is hoping their work gets more attention. Her goal is to restore the field of flags to its original state, ideally by next Memorial Day.
“The very first year, they put 1,500 flags in the field, and over 900 of them were named,” said Kennedy. “We have plans already to extend this. We want to see 1,000 flags in the field again, and so we want to get the word out to the community, let them know we’re still here. We’re hoping we can advertise more through our sponsorships next year and have a larger turnout and a larger field of flags.”
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