PARK HILLS — A Veterans of Foreign Wars post is hosting a ceremonial burning of worn-out and discarded American flags.

        Members of VFW Post 1484 in Park Hills are asking Greater Cincinnati residents to drop off their tattered flags by noon on Nov. 18. A flag-burning ceremony will take place four hours later in front of the post headquarters at 945 Montague Road.

        With the wave of patriotism sweeping the country, a few people have called the post in recent months asking how to properly dispose of their worn-out American flags, said Joseph M. Schamer, post commander and a World War II Navy veteran.

        “Flags are being used now more than ever,” said Mr. Schamer, 74.

        “They don't last forever, so there's bound to be a lot of wear and tear on them. The question always arises, "What do you do with them?'”

        Flag etiquette recommends that when a flag is “no longer a fitting emblem for display,” it should be destroyed “in a dignified way, preferably by burning.”

        As the second largest distributor of flags in the country, the VFW devotes much of its time to flag education, said Jerry Newberry, director of communications for the VFW's national headquarters in Kansas City, Mo.

        “Since Sept. 11, we've had hundreds, if not thousands, of questions regarding the proper way to display the flag and dispose of it,” Mr. Newberry said. “Obviously, more people are flying flags now, so there are going to be more flags wearing out.”

        Mr. Schamer said there will be a color guard at the ceremony and possible performances of “God Bless America” and taps as the flags are cut into pieces and burned.

        “I don't ever recall having done (a flag burning ceremony),” said Mr. Schamer, who's been a member of his VFW Post since 1965. “It's a rare thing. But I know I have a couple of my own flags that are tattered and torn. I feel like there should be a lot in the area.'

        For information on the flag-burning ceremony, or when to drop off a flag at the post, call (859) 581-1484.

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