A patriotic hobby: Seabrook craftsman thanks veterans with hand-carved flags

Alexander LaCasse, Portsmouth Herald
·5 min read

SEABROOK — Hobbyist craftsman Steve Rita said he’s living the American Dream and he wants to show his gratitude to the veterans who served this country he is proud to call home.

In some ways, Rita observes Veterans Day every month. He hand-carves custom wooden American flags and gives them to a veteran each month to thank them for serving in the military. He estimates he’s given some two dozen flags to veterans, and in total, he's made 747 flags and other hand-carved wooden crafts as part of his side business.

“Any veteran who asks me for a flag, I’ll make one,” said Rita, who is not a veteran himself. “I first wanted to give them to as many World War II veterans as possible. Then I made some for the Vietnam veterans and now I’m getting around to more veterans from the War on Terror.”

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Seabrook local Steve Rita has made hundreds of hand-carved American flags from wood.
Seabrook local Steve Rita has made hundreds of hand-carved American flags from wood.

Rita said he picked up woodworking as his COVID-19 pandemic hobby when he wasn’t working as a full-time truck driver or refereeing for mixed martial arts fights.

He said he started watching woodworking tutorials on YouTube. He then purchased a computer numerical control X-Carve machine, which automatically creates the designs he draws on a computer program called Easel and got to work.

“When COVID happened, it pretty much killed (mixed martial arts) fights for a year,” Rita said. “The woodworking side business really ramped up last March.”

Rita said he enjoys customizing each flag to best honor the veteran receiving it. Some of his designs include American flags featuring the insignia and slogan for the Marine Corps. He has also done ones for other branches of the military, as well as fun wooden plaques, such as one celebrating the return of Netflix’s “Cobra Kai” series.

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Seabrook local Steve Rita uses a machine to drill designs into the wood.
Seabrook local Steve Rita uses a machine to drill designs into the wood.

“They all differ, that’s what makes it fun,” Rita said. “Some veterans like to have their dates of service, whatever branch of the service they were in. It started out as a hobby, now it’s completely taken over my basement.”

Rita belongs to a flag making group on Facebook and it’s where he first got the inspiration to make flags for veterans.

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Since Rita started carving flags, he said some of his recipients include a donation of six flags to the Holyoke Soldiers' Home in Massachusetts – one for each branch of the armed services. He also partnered with his fellow flag makers online and donated 13 flags to the families of the 13 Marines killed at the Kabul airport during the last days of the American occupation of Afghanistan in August.

Steve Rita wipes off his work station on November 9, 2021 at his Seabrook home.
Steve Rita wipes off his work station on November 9, 2021 at his Seabrook home.

“I like to do anything to support the veterans because they don’t get a lot of the support they deserve, so this is my way of showing my appreciation,” Rita said. “I like doing it to hear their stories and see their reactions when they get their flag. They say they’re not going to cry when they get it, but they always cry.”

Most recently, one of Rita’s flags was showcased at Exeter’s Dan Healy Memorial 5K Sunday. Healy, a Navy SEAL, was killed fighting in Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan in 2005. Healy’s helicopter was dispatched to rescue a SEAL reconnaissance team, and the story of the mission has been captured in the book and movie titled “Lone Survivor.”

Healy’s mother Natalie, the race organizer, said she was touched to receive one of Rita’s flags in memory of her son. She said the race featured more than 300 runners and raised thousands of dollars for the Dan Healy Foundation, which supports Seacoast veterans, area single mothers and gives scholarships to local students pursuing trade school or a career in the military.

“Steve’s flag was so wonderful, it was kind of him to donate it to us,” Natalie Healy said. “I first met Steve at a car show in Newington last spring, and I think they’re a special way to thank a veteran.”

Rita fills in the designs with paint by hand on November 9, 2021.
Rita fills in the designs with paint by hand on November 9, 2021.

Rita said for the veterans receiving flags, they often prefer to display his carving in their home as opposed to a static American flag or one that is folded up in a case. He said they’re not just flags, but “pieces of art.”

“They’re very patriotic, and I found there’s a real demand for them,” Rita said. “Some veterans aren’t flying the flag on a pole outside their house, but if they have a wooden flag, they’re more apt to display it in their house.”

Rita posts his work on his Instagram account @Steves_Custom_Flags and videos of his work on his TikTok account @SteveRita6. He invites anyone interested in purchasing his work, or for veterans seeking a flag of their own, to send him a direct message on the platforms.

Rita said he also makes other handcrafted items, such as custom wooden cornhole boards, gun cases, bottle openers and other types of memorial signs. His work is featured in Locally Handmade shops in Hampton and Portsmouth, and beginning this weekend, also on sale in Haverhill, Massachusetts’ New to You Artisan Center. He will also be selling his work at the Castleberry Festival at the Topsfield Fairgrounds in Topsfield, Massachusetts this weekend.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Seabrook NH craftsman donates handmade wooden flags to veterans