While the sight of the American flag means many things to many people, it means something special to those who have fought under its emblem. Wareham’s veterans and other residents gathered at the Wareham-New Bedford Elks Lodge #73 on Saturday, June 15 to celebrate Flag Day and all that the Stars and Stripes stand for. 

Former Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Stanton, who currently teaches at Wareham High School, spoke about the constant presence the flag had been throughout his military service. 

“I’ve done a little bit of traveling over my time,” said Stanton, describing 28 years of deployments from West Germany to Panama — from South Korea to Iraq. “The one constant was this flag.”

“We must continue to fly the flag proudly,” he said. “As we gaze upon that beautiful banner of stars and stripes, remember those who have fought to defend it.”

Among those watching the ceremony was Patrick Michael Aloisius Murphy, a veteran who served on a repair ship for submarines in the Vietnam War era. 

Murphy said his first memory of the flag only featured 48 stars — he was 9 years old when Alaska and Hawaii got their stars. 

When he grew older and joined the military, the flag was that same constant symbol for Murphy as it was for Stanton. 

“It naturally was when you go through service,” said Murphy. “We remember that stuff — you’re fighting for this country, no matter what you did.”

The Wareham-New Bedford Elks Lodge #73 held the Flag Day ceremony, with members of the Wareham High School Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps presenting a series of American flags throughout history and the Wareham Fire Department flying an oversized flag from a ladder truck. 

The Elks have a unique affiliation to the American flag, being the “first and only fraternal body” to require every lodge to observe Flag Day, said Elks member Charles Ansome Jr. 

“The order is distinctly American,” Ansome said. “It has linked its destiny with the destiny of our country and made this flag its symbol of self-dedication to God, to country and to fellow man.”