'Seeing the flag fly': Flag Committee Chair reflects on Old Glory's impact

JONESBOROUGH - The street lights in Jonesborough are lined with Old Glories. Two American flags don each post on the streets of Tennessee's oldest town, idly flapping in the wind on Wednesday afternoon while the sun highlights their white, crimson and blue fabric. While Ruth Verhegge, chair of the Jonesborough Flag Committee in Jonesborough, sat at the Main Street Cafe, she said seeing the flags fly in the little town is a rewarding accomplishment. "I love coming by Academy Hill and looking down Main Street and seeing those flags," she said. "It just warms my heart every time I do it, and there are a lot of people in this town that feel the same way." Verhegge's commitment to having the flags fly in Jonesborough began more than two decades ago. In 2002, she became the founder and first original member of the Flag Committee. All her work for having the flags fly in the town gained recognition at the Jonesborough Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting on March 16, where Mayor Kelly Wolfe gave Verhegge a flag sent from Gov. Bill Lee and a proclamation making March 16 Ruth Verhegge Day. She said her reaction was one of shock and gratitude. "I never expected anything like that, and in a lot of ways, [I was] very pleased," she said with a smile. "It was really nice to know that what we had done over these last years is appreciated so much. We have talked about off and on how many people have come into town and said the reason they chose to move to Jonesborough was because of the flags, and that makes me feel taller." Verhegge's role with the Flag Committee originated with her personal connection to the military as an Army veteran and her love for the flag. She shared that after Sept. 11, 2001, Jonesborough consistently flew American flags down its streets in support of the country. In early 2002, though, the flags' upkeep became costly, and the town began to take them down. Verhegge then stepped in, beginning a grassroots effort to raise money to keep the flags flying. "I used to be at the Cranberry Thistle all the time, and I was down there and they were taking the flags down," she explained. "So, I went out and I asked about it, and they said, 'Well, the town can't afford to fly the flags all the time.' So, I got a pad of paper and I went from one business to the next and asked for donations, and I told them I thought the flags should be flown as long as we had men and women in harm's way." While she said she didn't remember the exact amount of money raised, Verhegge took the donations to the mayor at the time and shared her opinions and ideas of flying the flags and raising money to upkeep them. At the next Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting, Verhegge became chair of the Flag Committee. "I think it was 2003, maybe, we had a ceremony where the flags were put back up and we honored some people – we just tried to make a big deal out of it," Verhegge said. "And then, it just kept flying them." Flying the American flags in Jonesborough is well-received by many, whether they're Jonesborough natives or traveling tourists. However, just a few years after the establishment of the Flag Committee and the commitment to having the flags up in the town constantly, Verhegge said there were some complaints to have the flags taken down. Verhegge once again garnered community support, though, and the flags remained. "We did get some people that felt like the flags needed to come down," she said. "I didn't know what to do to try and overcome that, so what I did was get a petition and sat outside the Cranberry Thistle. When people came by, I would talk to them and ask them if they would sign the petition to keep the flags flying. I got a good number of signatures, turned them into the town and the flags have still flown." Since its creation in 2002, Verhegge's work with the Flag Committee has grown. American flags, once only on Main Street, now extend throughout the streets of Jonesborough. Tennessee flags also hang next to Old Glory on the street lamps around the Jonesborough Courthouse, and Verhegge ensured all the flags flying in the town are entirely made in the United States. She added patrons can also support the Flag Committee by participating in the committee's "Adopt a Flag", where the funds used go towards maintaining the flags and replacing them once they're retired. Seeing the Old Glories flap throughout Jonesborough is Verhegge's favorite achievement in all of her work. She said alongside her hope in sharing the flag's representation of both active and veteran military service members and their sacrifices for their country, she wants her legacy to be encapsulated in every Old Glory that remains flying. "I hope and pray that the people that live here and the people that come through town – because we have a lot of tourists – appreciate the significance of those flags, because I think we take a lot for granted in this country," she said. "The flag to me just stands for the benefits that we have as citizens of this country. I really hope that the flags will continue to fly."