LEWISTON — On June 10, the Lewiston Lodge of Elks No. 371 held its annual Flag Day services at the Lewiston Armory in conjunction with a groundbreaking for a new flagpole being donated to the city.

Several members and guests were present for the lodge’s tribute to the American flag. Attending the event were guest speakers Congressman Michael Michaud, Mayor Robert MacDonald of the City of Lewiston, and representatives from Sen. Olympia Snowe, Sen. Susan Collins and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree’s offices. Assisting with the event were veterans from the Franco-American War Veterans Post 31 and American Legion Post 153.

The event was opened by Exalted Ruler (lodge president) Kathleen Cotterly, who welcomed those in attendance to the event; introducing Ginger Leigh Smith who then sang the National Anthem.

After introductory exercises were conducted by the officers of the lodge, a history of the flag was given by Past Exalted Ruler (past president) Karen Staples. During the reading of the flag’s history, lodge members and veterans paraded replicas of the flags that were being described. Flags that were presented included the Pine Tree Flag of 1775, the Snake Flag of 1776-1777, a flag bearing the red cross of St. George and the white cross of St. Andrew of 1775, the Grand Union Flag of 1777, the Fort McHenry flag of 1812, the 20-star flag of 1818, the 48-star flag, and today’s 50-star flag, accompanied by the POW-MIA flag, remembering those who have served their country and were either held prisoner or are still missing in action.

Following the presentation of the flags, a response was given by Past State President Wayne Cotterly, who paid tribute to the men and women who had fought to protect our nation’s flag from the Revolutionary War to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Congressman Michael Michaud, a member of the Millinocket Elks Lodge 1521, thanked the Lewiston Elks for holding the service. He noted that the American flag stood for unity in our country, representing no one individual, group, political party or political philosophy, but representing all Americans. Mayor Robert MacDonald, also a member of the Lewiston Elks Lodge, thanked the lodge for spearheading the effort to replace the damaged flagpole on the roof of the Lewiston Armory.

At the close of the ceremony, the participants and attendees moved outside the building to hold the official groundbreaking of a new flagpole on the grounds of the Armory. The flagpole will be accompanied by a bench when the project is completed.

The Lewiston Elks obtained a grant through the Elks National Foundation in the amount of $2,000 for the flagpole; additional donations came in from several area organizations that wanted to help with the project. Organizations and businesses that made donations to the project include the Le Passe-Temps Inc, Franco-American War Veterans, Webber Avenue Social Club, Lewiston Fraternal Order of Eagles, American Legion Post 153, Lewiston Emblem Club 528, Tri-Star Molding, Bilodeau Insurance and Dorothy Fernald-ERA Worden, as well as several individuals. In addition to monetary contributions, Elk member Louis Ouellette, owner of LOCBID Construction, and Stan Hill of WD Matthews have offered to remove the damaged flagpole from the roof of the Armory.