NORTH KINGSVILLE — With the help of the community, North Kingsville is poised to transform a local cemetery into a sea of red, white and blue in time for Flag Day 2010.
Greenlawn Memory Gardens on Route 20 is slated to host a Healing Field of Honor, which will feature hundreds of flags erected to honor veterans and first-responders, including police officers and firefighters, said Jennifer Blanchette, project chairwoman.
The event will be held June 11-15, which spans Flag Day. A dedication ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. June 12.
The big flags — each is 3 feet by 5 feet — will be mounted on 8-foot poles and lined up in perfect rows, Blanchette said.
So far, Greenlawn plans to erect 200 flags, but hundreds more could be added if sponsorships prove successful. Groups, families and individuals can sponsor a flag in memory or honor of a loved one at different levels beginning at $25, Blanchette said. When the event is over, the flag is removed and goes home with its sponsor, she said. Proceeds will benefit local veterans groups.
Healing Fields have been held at various locations across the country, but none in the Ashtabula County area, Blanchette said.
“The closest has been Akron,” she said.
Work on the project began last year but picked up steam in November, Blanchette said. Volunteers have been enlisted to coordinate the program and to install the flags.
Also, veterans groups in the area will provide honor guards who will play “Taps” daily at the display.
Greenlawn is the perfect location for a Healing Field, Blanchette said.
“We have a large field (on the property), and 1,300 veterans are buried here,” she said.
Organizers hope the Healing Field proves an event everyone can support and enjoy.
“We want to bring something that’s positive to the area,” Blanchette said. “There’s been so much conflict. We want to bring the community together.”
The sight of so many flags lined in exact rows is an emotional experience for many, Blanchette said.
“It’s very moving and overwhelming,” she said.
For more information on Healing Field of Honor 2010 or sponsorships, visit www. healingfield.org/nkingsville or contact Jennifer Blanch-ette at Greenlawn Memory Gardens (440-224-1155) or e-mail her (greenlawn@ windstream.net).
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