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June 13, 2009
Illinois Man Rescues Flags Improperly Thrown Out
Waste Management driver Jeff Olsen, 33, of South Elgin, Ill., has rescued more than 250 American flags from trash containers along his residential trash pickup routes.
Illinois man rescues flags improperly thrown out
ELGIN, Ill.
Jeff Olsen doesn't pay much attention to the garbage he collects unless he spots red and white stripes or white stars on a blue background.
Whenever he sees a U.S. flag in the trash, Olsen retrieves it and takes it back to Waste Management offices in this Chicago suburb. He has rescued more than 250 flags in the past 18 months.
Olsen, 33, who was born in Grimsby, Ontario, started recovering flags soon after he was hired in 2005. Doug Zywiciel, a co-worker, brought a battered flag into the office, and Olsen asked him about it.
"He said, 'If you can believe it, people throw them out,' " Olsen recalls. Zywiciel and Jamie Lauderdale, another driver, explained that as Army veterans, they are offended when people don't dispose of flags properly.
"It just clicked," Olsen says, and he decided to join their effort to save discarded flags. American Legion Post 57 and Elks Lodge 737 will honor him on Flag Day, which is Sunday. Next month, he will be recognized at the state American Legion convention.
Flags collected by Olsen and other Waste Management drivers go into a box. When it's full, the flags are taken to the American Legion.
Don Sleeman, Post 57's adjutant, says enough flags to fill a 35-gallon container 40 times are dropped off every year.
Flags made of cotton or wool are burned in disposal ceremonies; those made of synthetic materials go to a local crematorium, which incinerates them for free.
Some people know how to properly discard flags, Sleeman says, but others "don't respect the flag, or they are ignorant of what to do with it." The American Legion distributes pamphlets on flag etiquette, and members visit schools to tell fifth- and sixth-graders about the flag's history and appropriate care.
Mike Schuiteman, Olsen's supervisor, says drivers aren't allowed to scavenge items from the garbage they collect, but flags are an exception.
"All our drivers have gotten together to do this," he says. "They realize this is a symbol of our nation."
Olsen's wife, Stacie, a former Army medic, helped him understand the flag's importance. When he finds one, "I feel kind of patriotic," says Olsen, who is a citizen of the USA and Canada. He and Stacie have two children, Tyler, 5, and Abbey, 2.
Several found flags are on display at the Waste Management facility here; Olsen has one in his garage, next to a Canadian flag.
"It's the symbol of our nation, so you have to take care of it," Olsen says. "You dump it, you see it, you grab it and you get it to the right place."
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Wild Thing's comment........
What a great story, I am so glad to hear about this. And I was glad to see what the boss said too that he is for it and the reason he gave was perfect.
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......Thank you RAC for sending this to me.
RAC has a website that is awesome. 336th Assault Helicopter Company
13th Combat Aviation Battalion - 1st Aviation Brigade - Soc Trang, Republic of Vietnam
Posted by Wild Thing at June 13, 2009 07:50 AM
Comments
It is Honorable what they are doing and I salute them all.
It is a kind of sad statement however, that someone of Canadian heritage shows more patriotism toward things American than a lot of Americans do...
Posted by: Fercryinoutloud at June 13, 2009 12:22 PM
It's too bad this Canadian/US Citizen wasn't at the Democrat Convention last summer as they threw thousands of flags on the ground.
Posted by: BobF at June 13, 2009 01:37 PM
Thanks Chrissie and RAC.
On November 4, 2008 I carefully folded my United States flag and put it away for the day we redeem our freedom. An honorable flag bought for, fought for and owned by me.
Until then, the nation can deservedly fly what they want, the Democrat's flag. Don't like that flag, offended? Tuff shit, it's what you Democrats voted for!!!
I refuse to dishonor my nation's, Made in America, not Communist China, flag, by flying it under the nation's control by a usurper, a fraud, a Marxist and a Muslim.
Astutely noted Fercryinoutloud, a Canadian National, it says a lot about the level of general respect, and more about self respect, in the nation.
On Memorial Day I took both grandson's to the event at Allyn, WA, a local ceremony to honor the fallen and their families and a few of the living, where Richard Bell a Củ Chi tunnel rat was master of ceremonies. The youngest grandson has an 'attitude', he was wearing one of those 'cocksucker hats', pulled down around his ears, when the National Anthem was played he grudgingly stood with us, but didn't remove that obnoxious piece of shit hat, I did, I ripped it off and dropped it on the floor, nobody said a thing or there would have been an ass kicking then and there, but he for damned sure showed some respect for the rest of the day.
Posted by: Jack at June 13, 2009 02:16 PM
Glad to see there are still some people who respect Old Glory. Olsen, his wife, co workers and his supervisor are all to be commended for going the extra steps to insure the proper disposal of old flags.
Posted by: TomR at June 13, 2009 02:33 PM
Fercryinoutloud, yes it is honorable and
I agree with what you said.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 13, 2009 07:12 PM
BobF., yess what a mess they left behind
and all those wonderful Flags thrown on the
floor. Good idea Bob.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 13, 2009 07:14 PM
Jack, that was great, thank you for
sharing about your youngest grandson .
He learned something that day something
very special and important.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 13, 2009 07:18 PM
Tom, such a wonderful story. I agree
I love stories like this.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 13, 2009 07:20 PM
