Old Glory waved in the breeze hundreds of times over Tuesday — Flag Day — in a North Huntingdon neighborhood.
The large patriotic display was the handiwork of Carol Slonecker, who said she placed 450 small American flags along the streets in much of the Redstone Highlands villa home community where she lives.
“It looks so nice and it makes me feel good,” said Slonecker, 68.
The effort started in 2020. Slonecker said she initiated it because her husband, who died in 2019, enjoyed putting flags in their yard. At first, the display decorated only the cul-de-sac where she lives.
Then, it stretched down the street. Now, residents and visitors are greeted by flags upon entering the neighborhood off Lincoln Way. Slonecker said she plans to expand in future years.
“I still have 130 to put out,” she said.
The display is set up for one week surrounding five holidays — Memorial Day, Flag Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day and Veterans Day. Slonecker has it down to a science. When she installs a new flag, she hammers a small piece of plastic pipe into the ground to act as a permanent holder for the flag’s wooden stick.
That makes it easy when it comes time to put them up and take them down. It took about 90 minutes to set up for Flag Day. Slonecker praised the cooperation of her neighbors as well as Twin Valley Cemetery from which she said she gets the flags donated.
“It’s all thanks to them because the flags would cost you an arm and a leg,” she said.
Flag Day is a state holiday in Pennsylvania. On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress approved the design of the first flag of the United States.
Nearly nine months later, a flag bearing 13 stripes with alternating red and white and 13 white stars on a blue background was first carried into war at the Battle of Brandywine in eastern Pennsylvania, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
The flag we know today has 50 stars, one for each state, and 13 stripes representing the colonies that established independence from Great Britain.
Slonecker prepared for future installations Tuesday by cutting pipe that will be used for the remaining 130 flags. She’ll wait for cooler weather to get them into the ground. Slonecker said she looks forward to the patriotic display and uses it as a way to remember her husband.
“My motto is bloom where you’re planted,” she said.
