Why I Honor the American Flag, by Brigham

Every year, the Idaho Veterans of Foreign Wars sponsor an essay contest for middle and high school students.  Last year, Brigham won second place in the district competition and got $75.  This year, Brigham won third place ($50) for his essay entitled "Why I Honor the American Flag."  The essay went on to the regional competition, where it was again judged blindly, and he took second place ($75). 

Brigham works so hard at school--he is very driven and does well in both scholastic and athletic pursuits.  He was pretty stoked to get $125 for writing his essay, and we are pretty proud of the sentiments he was able to express.  This kid is going places!

Why I Honor the American Flag

                All flags represent something and have their own unique values. Our flag, the American flag, represents many things.

The stripes represent the thirteen original colonies of our country, the thirteen colonies that worked hard to put us where we are today. Those colonies declared independence from the English empire in 1776, and they gave our country freedom: freedom of speech, freedom of press, and freedom of religion. These freedoms allow us to worship the way we want, they allow us to be entitled to our own opinion, and they allow us to express our own opinions freely.

The fifty stars on our flag represent the fifty states we have today, which collaborate to form one great country. Our fifty states have come so far from the original colonies, with the flag design changing over time.   

The flag does represent all kinds of great freedoms, but freedom didn’t exist for everyone in America right when the Declaration of Independence was signed. The original flag, the one with only thirteen stars, was made in a time when everyone didn’t have those freedoms. Women couldn’t vote, and African-Americans and other people of color couldn’t vote or own property and were enslaved.

The first recognizable flag of our country was made by Betsy Ross, a woman. And it took our country until 1920 to allow women to vote. People of color didn’t have the privilege to vote until 1870, and Native-Americans couldn’t vote until 1924!  

Although our country didn’t allow these things, the ideal of the flag has existed since 1776.  That ideal is freedom for all, and that is an ideal we still work for in present-day America. I honor the flag when I show gratitude for the freedoms I enjoy, but also when I remember that ideal: freedom for all.  Our country hasn’t always been perfect, but that perfect ideal has held firm.  When I stand up for the freedom of others, I honor the American flag.

This essay contest is open to all three school districts in our county, and grades 6-8,
so it was pretty cool when three eighth grade boys from TMS won together.
Ethan, Colton, and Brig were the three winners.

I love my small town!  They really go all out to honor the veterans.

I found Calvin!  See that sweet teacher smiling at him?  She is the best!

Mollie, chillin' with her fifth grade homies . . . 

Truman, playin' it cool with the juniors . . .