Former Buffalo Soldiers (from left) Lorenzo Denson, Columbia Township, Uell Flagg, Walnut Hills, and Linwood Greene Jr., Silverton. Flagg will discuss the unit at the Madisonville library. (Courtesy George Hicks III)

• Faith Matters

Uell Flagg was part of that select group of black servicemen - known as Buffalo Soldiers - who patrolled the Mexican border during World War II.

Flagg joined C Troop, 28th Cavalry, in Camp Lockett, Calif., two years before the all-black cavalry was disbanded.

The Buffalo Soldiers carved a named for themselves in the mid-1800s and early 1900s, subduing Mexican revolutionaries, fighting outlaws and hostile American Indians and building and repairing frontier outposts.

Flagg, 79, will relate that history at 4 p.m. Feb. 5 at the Madisonville Branch Library, 4830 Whetsel Ave., when he presents "Buffalo Soldiers: A History."

"It wasn't very much fun messing with those horses,'' said Flagg who grew up in Cincinnati's West End. "I had never been on a horse. The horses threw us all over the place.''

Flagg of Golf Manor said before going into the military, he was influenced by Scoutmaster Leo Hopkins. He said the discipline and training he received under Hopkins enabled him to make the transition from civilian life to the military.

He said his unit was the last of the U.S. Horse Cavalry units activated in the 20th century.

He later served in North Africa, France and Italy. After military service, he worked for a steel mill in Lockland, as well as in construction in Chicago, Cleveland and Toledo

He rejoined the military in 1951, serving in the Air Force until 1958. He retired from the U.S. Postal Service in 1979.

Valentines for seniors

About 5,000 seniors will get special valentine cards from students in the Lakota School District.

Anna Flaig, third-grade teacher at Hopewell Elementary School, is again heading the project.

"I send out notices to all the schools in the district and most of the time, they all participate,'' Flaig said. "It is a great project. Some of the cards are made in different languages from foreign language classes."

She said this year's goal is the same as last year's, when students made 5,000 valentine cards. The cards will be distributed to the elderly by the Council on Aging through its "Meals on Wheels'' program.

Flaig said a box will be placed in the lobby at Hopewell where cards can be placed, or they can be mailed to room 117 at the school, 8300 Cox Road, 45069.

She said the cards can be put in Ziploc bags in groups of 25. Students should sign their first names and cards should be made, not purchased. Students also are asked not to write get-well messages.

"Messages such as 'Be My Valentine' or simply 'Thinking of you' are good," Flaig said. She said poems are nice, and students can sign their school if they wish.

Deadline for collecting valentine cards is Feb. 6.