Around 80 volunteers from Crossroads Community Church placed 10,000 American flags in the lawn in front of their place of worship on Rye Canyon Road in Valencia Wednesday morning for the Memorial Day weekend to honor those who died while serving in the military.
According to Launee Tudich, executive assistant at the church, the display is not just a symbol, but a promise that the brave men and women who paid the ultimate price in service of their country will never be forgotten.
“When people come down Rye Canyon Road,” Tudich said over the phone on Tuesday before work began, “you’re just going to see a big sea of flags in the grass.”
Two-year-old Walker Haas of Valencia came to the event on Wednesday with his grandparents, Paul and Danielle Collins of Saugus. At one point during the morning, Haas waved his American flag in the spirit of the activity.
According to the boy’s grandma, who’s a Crossroads member, the family wouldn’t miss something like this.
“It’s important to just show support and to also show our little ones to volunteer and be helpful,” she said.
Haas’s grandpa, who’s a United States Navy veteran, said taking part in the flag display was important to him because it honors veterans and it particularly pays tribute to those who have fallen in the line of military duty.
Piru resident and church member Michael Chinery, who’s a U.S. Air Force vet, took part in placing flags. He said that it was a show of respect for those who came before him and who didn’t make it.
Castaic resident and Crossroads member Vince Quintana, also a U.S. Air Force veteran, echoed Chinery’s sentiments, saying there’s no greater way to show your love to others than sacrificing your life for them.
“It’s important,” Quintana said, “to honor that legacy that they leave behind.”
According to Tudich, Wednesday was the first time the church has ever done a display of flags for Memorial Day. She said she hoped it would become a tradition.
