HERITAGE DAYS - AG-ED CENTER - FLAG RETIREMENT

The19th Annual Heritage Days exhibits and demonstrations at the Carroll County Agricultural-Education Center were held on Thursday and Friday, September 25 & 26, 2014.  Members of the Carroll County Veterans Memorial Park and the American Legion Post 143 demonstrated how a USA flag is retired. (Chaplain Larry Boswell, John Bassett, Karl Kissinger,  Bobby Laney, Ronnie Pate, Dale Robinson are all members of Post 143 and John, Ronnie and Dale are also members of Veterans Park Committee).

This year over 1200 Carroll County fourth grade students toured the 19th-century farmstead and experienced life on the farm as well as the one-room schoolhouse.  Beginning at 9:00 a.m., the classes were guided over the Heritage Trail where a great number of presenters covered things like Homestead living (Log cabin, Blacksmith, and The Mountain Man), a live American Indian teepee and demonstration, a revolution Presentation staring Charles Carroll who explained the Betsy Ross Flag and the other flags of the Revolution, a complete Confederate Army Camp with soldiers firing muskets and a canon.

Then at 12:30 each day approximately 600 fourth graders gathered on the ground in front of the Flag Retirement Team for the formal retirement of one "Old Glory" which is beyond serving as our National symbol any longer.

As the students look at their heritage and see a little of the 19^th century farmstead they can begin to visualize the life lived by the grandparents and great-grandparents and imagine life without computers and air conditioning, etc.  This experience should enrich their curriculum and give them a new appreciation for education and our Veterans!