US Flags Vandalized At Logandale Cemetery

By NICK YAMASHITA

The Progress

A whole row of American flags placed along the front fenceline of the Logandale Cemetery last week were vandalized on Sunday night, July 26.

Thirteen of the 16 flags placed at the cemetery were destroyed or damaged by fire. Someone had apparently gone down the fenceline and set fire to each of the flags while they were still hanging on the poles. The value of the damaged property was estimated at $100.

Local veterans Clifford Peterson, Oscar Henderson and Jack Johnson had placed those flags last week, as well as many others, to celebrate the “Pioneer Day” holiday. The flags were intended to remain flying through the Korean War Memorial Day on July 27.

The three-man team had taken on this new role with great enthusiasm. For years now, the flags have been set out by members of local veterans organizations to celebrate major holidays. But this year, the veterans groups experienced a shortage in personnel who were able to post the colors in the community.

When they learned of this, Henderson, Peterson and Johnson immediately contacted the VFW leadership to find out how they could take over the job. They volunteered to do the job.

But in taking over the project, they also decided to expand the flag-flying observance to other important days of the year. They identified 40 such days and created a schedule for posting the flag on all 40 days throughout the year. The first date was on the Independence Day holiday earlier this month.

“We got ahold of the old flags and found all of them to be in bad shape,” Peterson said. “We were able to get some private donations from local families and were able to purchase all new flags for the 4th of July. Then we simply took over the duty of being flag-bearers for the community.”

“We felt like during these tough times, we really needed the uplift of spirits that the flags bring by getting the flags up,” Peterson added.

It worked. Last week, the men again went about putting up the brand new flags. Feedback from community members was positive. In social media posts, many local residents expressed delight to see the colors flying in the community again.

That made Sunday’s act of vandalism even more hurtful. Henderson said that seeing the new flags treated in this manner was heartbreaking.

“It doesn’t matter about the value of the flags,” he said. “It is the principle that this flag represents our patriotism and that we value what the flag represents.”

Henderson called the act of vandalism despicable. “The whole community is going to be outraged about it,” he said, “especially those who just donated the money for the purchase of these flags.”

The vandalism was discovered by a Logandale family who were out for a family drive at around 7:30 p.m. on Sunday evening. It shocked them to the point that they notified a friend who then contacted Henderson and Peterson. The two men came to the scene to find ashes from the damaged flags still on the ground. It was they who called the Metropolitan Police dispatch in Las Vegas to report the incident.

Local law enforcement responded to the scene after being notified of the incident. The matter is still under investigation. No suspects have yet been named.

Local law enforcement personnel reminded the community that when a crime is committed, it should be reported immediately by calling 311 or 911 in order to help local law enforcement with faster response and with the investigation.