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Eagle Scout collects 2000 old flags for project

By Steve Ferris 2 min read

When 16-year-old Chris Hunchuck decided to collect worn-out, tattered American flags so they can be properly retired for his Eagle Scout project, he didn’t realize how challenging it would be. Over the last 12 months, Hunchuck gathered more than 2,000 old flags that will be retired by burning during a July 22 ceremony in the south parking lot of American Legion Post 51 in Uniontown. The service begins at 11 a.m.

“It was a lot more work than I thought it would be, but it’s worth it,” said Hunchuck, the son of Mary and Lawrence A. Hunchuck of Uniontown. He will be a junior at Laurel Highlands High School in the fall.

Becoming an Eagle Scout has been a goal for Hunchuck, who has been in the Boy Scouts since he was in first grade. He is a member of Troop 612 at St. Therese Catholic Church in Uniontown, where his father is the troop master.

Joe T. Joseph of the Legion is sponsoring Hunchuck in his effort to become an Eagle Scout.

He said Uniontown Mayor James Sileo, the county commissioners and state legislators have been invited to the ceremony.

Ronald Duerring, 24th District Commander of the American Legion, is also planning to attend the service.

“We stand behind the Boy Scouts and everything they represent 100 percent,” Duerring said. “I believe in the Boy Scouts.”

Hunchuck removed old flags from the graves of 1,300 veterans in the Oaklawn and Oak Grove cemeteries and replaced them with new ones.

It rained one day he planned to change flags at one of the cemeteries, but he had already made arrangements to be there that day. He said he went ahead with his plans, working three hours in the rain that day.

Seventeen of the flags that will be retired once decorated the streets of Uniontown, but were desecrated, Joseph said.

The other flags came from a variety of sources. Hunchuck said he contacted people he knows, his mother helped by contacting people she knows and works with, and he posted a notice about the project at the church.

In a flag retirement ceremony, Old Glory is folded and placed on a fire. Veterans and Scouts will come to attention and salute. Ceremony participants will recite Pledge of Allegiance or take a brief moment for reflection.

After the flags are completely burned, the fire will be extinguished and the ashes will be buried.

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