Welcome!!

Welcome to our Honor with Flags blog. We are working to inform folks about a variety of topics that include Fundraising with Youth, Patriotism, History, and Family.

Our family is tight-knit one, even if not always close geographically. We have 4 children who, as of this post, are starting 4th grade, 7th grade, 10th grade, and Sophomore year at the University of Notre Dame. All are active in Choir, Marching Band, Theater, Tae Kwon Do, Summer Swim League, Scouts, and a variety of church activities. Our Google calendar often looks like someone splatter-painted it!

With all of these activities to balance, we try to stress the core value of community within our family. The unity that we have in our communities is truly where we see God’s love, it’s how we show God’s love to others, and it’s where God’s peace lives. My time working with the Boy Scouts of America both as a youth and an adult has taught me a phrase that embodies all aspects of this value— The Boy Scout Law:

A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent.

No matter what Religion, Race, or Culture you come from or participate in, these 12 values are fundamental. If you strive to live by these values you will succeed in building community and spreading peace in the world.

I heard Rex Tillerson, current Secretary of State and former CEO of ExxonMobil, speak and he said his advice to new business owners looking for company value statements need go no further than the Boy Scout Law. He said if you run your company with the values straight from the Boy Scout law, you will be successful in all you do. With the foundation of our church and these values we are raising our children and building Honor with Flags.

The American flag means so much to us. We have military roots on both sides of our family, including veterans from the French & Indian War, WW I & II, Korea, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Valerie’s grandfather was a POW in Japan for 5 years and her father retired as a full Colonel.

The American flag unites us— Republican, Democrat, Independent, Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Jewish, Gay, Straight, Bisexual, Transgender, Black, White, Latino, Asian—and all other political affiliations, religions, sexual orientations, nationalities, and races not listed here. We bring together our diverse stories, gifts, and experiences and we all proudly stand under the American Flag as a patchwork people. We all stand for the 13 states that declared independence and started this country. We all stand for the hugely diverse 50 states that make up our United States. And we all stand for the freedom that our Constitution affords us!

As the Psalmist says, "How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity!" (133:1) We believe the American flag represents and celebrates our unity.

So off we journey into this adventure, trying to help youth organizations earn money, yes, but in the end helping our communities unify under our American Flag; showing HONOR with FLAGS.