Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes and the Mercer County Office of Veteran Services invite citizens, civic groups and local Scout organizations to participate in an official flag decommissioning ceremony on Thursday, June 6 at 6 p.m. in Veterans Park near Klockner Road entrance. In case of rain, the ceremony will be held Friday, June 7 at 6 p.m.
Each year, Veteran Services partners with local veterans from the American Legion Post 31 and the Hamilton Township Patriotic Committee to hold the time-honored decommissioning, also known as “flag retirement.”
American flags that are tattered, soiled or are otherwise no longer fit for display will be burned in a dignified manner during the ceremony. The flames will be doused by firefighters from the Nottingham Fire Company of Hamilton. Veteran Services has collected thousands of flags eligible for retirement for the past several months from American Legion Post 31, private homes, the veterans’ section of Greenwood Cemetery in Hamilton, and government offices including the Mercer County Clerk’s Office and Sheriff’s Office.
Organizations that wish to have an American flag properly disposed of should bring the flag to any Mercer County office, including County Connection on Route 33, the Mercer County Park Commission Offices or Ranger Headquarters, the Mercer County Veterans Home on Hamilton Avenue, or the McDade Administration Building at 640 South Broad St., Trenton.
