Old Glory Memorial, which honors those who have served, turns 20: Trish Long
The Old Glory Memorial in Northeast El Paso turns 20 this year.
Fundraising for the 180-foot flagpole that frequently flies a 40-foot-by-80-foot flag began in September 2002. The El Paso Community College board of trustees voted 6-0 to lease land to the group for $1 a year.
$71,000 plan to erect flag instills pride
Jan. 6, 2003, El Paso Times:
When Richard M. Gilliland sees an American flag, he feels a sense of pride that is indescribable.
“It is almost overwhelming,” Gilliland said. “My chest swells and I get tears in my eyes. It’s just love for this country.”
The 56-year-old Vietnam veteran recently donated $100 to the El Paso Chapter National Flag Foundation’s Flags Across America Campaign. The local effort would help erect a 180-foot flagpole that will fly a 40-foot-by-80-foot flag at El Paso Community College Transmountain Campus.
Robert J. Soltis, president of the local foundation, said the fundraising efforts began in September. “This is not a Northeast project, this is a community project,” Soltis said. “It is a flag memorial being supported by the community. No tax dollars are going into this. Whatever we can raise is totally nonprofit.”
The group has raised $12,000 in monetary donations and supplies toward the $71,000 venture. Soltis said a memorial that includes benches and trees and will cost about $200,000 also is being planned.
Soltis said the memorial is not meant to compete with the Mexican flag at the Chamizal National Memorial, which he said is a 93-by-162-foot flag and has a pole that stands 339 feet tall.
Standing tall: Patriots thrilled to drive past towering flag in Northeast
Dec. 5, 2003, El Paso Times:
Eastsider Juan Elizondo expects his daily routine to become more patriotic from now on. After more than a year, Elizondo and thousands of people who drive through Northeast El Paso will be able to see the 40-foot-by-80-foot flag that now flies on a 180-foot flagpole. The flag was raised Wednesday. ...
The structure, which is now the largest in El Paso and the biggest flag put up by any National Flag Foundation Chapter, will be formally unveiled at a ceremony in remembrance of the bombing on Pearl Harbor at the site on the corner of Diana and Gateway North. …
The flag, which sits on more than two acres of land, will be up 24 hours a day and will only be replaced with a smaller version in bad weather.
“They are keeping the Texas theme of everything being very large,” Joyce Doody, executive director of the National Flag Foundation, said. “…It will be a wonderful rallying point for patriotic events and an educational site for people and children to learn about history…”
El Paso Texas Flags Across America raises funds for new Old Glory Memorial flagpole
Sept. 29, 2020, El Paso Times:
A car cruise-in helped El Paso Texas Flags Across America raise money for a new flagpole as the nonprofit group held its first fundraiser of 2020 at the Old Glory Memorial in Northeast El Paso. …
Unrepairable structural cracks were discovered on the flagpole on Pearl Harbor Day in 2019. Shortly after the new year, the 5,000-square-foot flag that had flown over Northeast El Paso since 2003 was taken down.
For safety reasons, the pole was disassembled and removed at a cost of $35,000, leaving the center of the memorial bare.
The estimated cost of replacing the 180-foot flagpole is $150,000, said Tony Lewis, founder and president of the nonprofit organization.
Flagpole restored
After delays due to the pandemic and with donations from the community, the flagpole at the Old Glory Memorial was returned to its site in the Northeast in October 2021.
Memorials to those who have served
Memorials at the Old Glory site and their inscriptions include:
Old Glory Memorial El Paso
Flies to honor all who serve our country and those who have given their lives in the name of the Freedom we enjoy everyday.The Flag stands for all that we hold dear, Freedom, Democracy, Government of the People, By the People and for the People.
‒ Henry Cabot Lodge, 1915
El Paso Vietnam Veterans Memorial
The names inscribed upon it are those of the 208 servicemen from El Paso County, Texas, that lost their lives or are missing in action between 1961 and 1975, during the Vietnam War. They are part of the 50,479 American service members who died or remain unaccounted for.
This memorial is dedicated not only to those who gave their all, but also to those that returned, in many cases to hostile reception.
It is also intended to form a closure, if only in a small way, for the veterans and the families of our fallen brothers.
SSGT. Christopher Diaz K-9 Memorial
Dedicated to all U.S. military working dog handlers and their beloved dogs who defend America from harm, defeat the enemy and save lives.
Women Warriors Monument
Pioneers, Nation Builders, and Comrades in Arms behind the line and on the line, proudly serving for America's Freedom.
Women Airforce Service Pilots 'WASP'
In honor of World War II Women Airforce Service Pilots “WASP” killed in service.
We will never forget our debt to female war pilot heroes.
Korean War Memorial
This memorial is dedicated to the Korean War veterans serving in the first conflict of the “Cold War.” Prisoners of War were placed in unimaginably hostile conditions suffering from torture, inhumane treatment, and acute hunger. More than 40% of the 7,140 Americans taken prisoner died in captivity.
We shall never forget the missing in action and those who died on the battlefield.
We went to a country we never heard of to help people we did not know, to save a nation from communist aggression from North Korea.
Died: 54,246
Wounded: 103,284
MIA: 8,177
Freedom is not free
These veterans shall not be forgotten. Welcome home. Thanks for a job well done.
World War I Memorial
To honor all military personnel who served in World War I, nearly 5 million Americans.
We especially honor Frank Woodruff Buckles (1901-2011), the last Doughboy and the last serving veteran of WWI.
This memorial also honors Benjamin S. Fitzgerald, who served in World War I.
World War II Memorial
This memorial to all those who served in World War II was made possible by William Haddad 12-05-24/01-18-06, who served in the US Navy during this war. Haddad established a charitable trust charged with the task of building a memorial to all who served in this war: "That they would never be forgotten."
9/11/2001 Memorial
In memory of all who perished in the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
The Spirit of Freedom
To those who have fallen,
To those who were called,
To those who were heroes who sacrificed all,
Look not up to buildings, shattered glass and steel pulls
It is the Spirit of Freedom
That makes us all stand tall
Purple Heart Memorial
Dedicated to all the men and women wounded in all our wars.
Combat wounded veterans
My stone is red for the blood they shed.
The medal I bear is my country's way to show they care.
If I could be seen by all mankind maybe peace will come in my lifetime.
Fallen Soldier Memorial
Memorial to our fallen soldiers.
Trish Long may be reached at tlong@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Old Glory Memorial in Northeast El Paso turns 20 this year
