2,000 flags now adorn the front lawn of Shawnee High School
The Yellow Ribbon Club, reestablished back to Shawnee High School last year by Shawnee students Emily Windl, Danielle Lorenz, and Jessica Pratt, decorated Shawnee High School’s front lawn with 2,000 American flags in honor of Memorial Day.
The club has participated and organized in many community events over the past two school years. In the past, the club has surprised Vietnam Veterans with a Welcome Home celebration, collected care packages, ran Toys for Tots drives, participated in local charity walks, laid wreaths at a local military cemetery, and have honored military alumni with “Renegade Veterans” shirts. The club also works closely with David Silver of Operation Yellow Ribbon of South Jersey to collect for care packages, bake and collect cookies for the holidays, and welcome home local military heroes.
This year, club advisor Mrs. Rachel Belville and the Yellow Ribbon Renegades wanted to pull off a Memorial Day Flag Fundraiser to remind the Medford Community of the true meaning behind Memorial Day. Senior Jessica Pratt and Freshman Lea Tarzy took the reins of the project. The almost 40 member club, sold 12×18" American Flags to students, staff, and family members throughout the Shawnee Community for $1.00 during the month of March. The club was able to purchase 2000 American flags as well as donate $500 to the Travis Manion Foundation.
The club is so pleased with the way the display has turned out. Mrs Belville states, “It has been truly overwhelming with the amount of appreciation we have received over the two days that the display has been up. The school has been receiving phone calls, emails, and tagged in posts on social media. We feel that our mission was successful and people in the community are able to take a moment to remember those who have sacrificed everything for our freedom as they pass by the entrance of our school.”
The display will be taking down the week following Memorial Day Weekend. The club hopes to grow their display in the years to come.
