Three times each year, River Hills residents decorate their neighborhood with American flags in honor of Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Veterans Day. Even with the current COVID-19 guidelines in place, this year was no exception. In fact, this year was one to remember.
On Saturday morning of November 7, residents masked up and gathered (socially distanced) in small numbers at their respective check-in points. The task of setting out flags always proves to be an easy one for volunteers of all ages, and many hands really do make light work of it.
Flags were placed in the medians along the parkway, surrounding the front and back gate houses, at the main entrance to the River Hills Country Club and at each of the 18 village marquee signs. In all, over 500 flags were set out in less than 45 minutes.
With Veterans Day having been celebrated on November 11, one particular village, Laurel Pointe, decided to take the flag decorating to a new level. An anonymous team of veterans secretly placed a full-size American flag and flanked it with the flags of each of the branches of service—all illuminated beautifully by the marquee lights.
The picture was posted on the neighborhood residents’ Facebook page, and the positive feedback and comments started pouring in. Who knew that there were so many veterans, active duty, National Guard members and parents of West Point and Naval Academy students living within River Hills?
Yet again, River Hills residents showed their respect, honor and gratitude to their military neighbors, heroes, spouses and families included. With so many negative or controversial issues on our daily news lately, these acts of patriotism brought smiles, waves, photos and car honks of appreciation to those who passed by. It was a win-win for the entire River Hills community.
To learn more about River Hills events, contact Julie Rule, chair of the River Hills Social Team, at julierule001@gmail.com.
