Dear Editor:This is a thank-you letter to all the citizens that brought American flags to the Royal Ranger firework stand in Downey this year to be respectfully retired. Most people did not bring just one flag, but a bag of them. They knew that you don't just throw away an American flag, but they had no place or way to retire them. It is sad to see these other countries burning our American flag; of course, they aren't doing it out of respect. It is surprising (or maybe not) that a lot of people don't know how to retire a flag. In the four days at the firework stand, we collected 108 American flags, one California flag and eight Marine Corps flags. A special thank you to U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Fernando Guzman for helping the evening we retired the Marine Corps flags. He told us a little of the history of the flag and what is on it and what they represent. He also told about his tour of duty and his involvement in Somalia. Mark Adamson Senior Commander, Royal Rangers Outpost 132

********** Published: September 27, 2012 - Volume 11 - Issue 24