Flags for Fallen Soldiers

The Ohio Flags of Honor touring memorial made its way to Zanesville in preparation for this weekend’s event.

Volunteers set up more than 750 flags in Zane’s Landing Park to get ready for Friday’s opening ceremonies. Ohio has lost 294 soldiers in battle, both in Iraq and Afghanistan. Flags will be on display all weekend long in their honor. President of the program, Gino Zimmer, talked to us about getting ready for Friday’s ceremony.

“We’re setting up the flags today, most places we travel we get a lot of help to help set up, and then break down,” he said. “We’re just getting it ready for tonight’s ceremony, we’ve got all of the support flags up and the colored flags with the different branches of service, and tonight we will post each soldier’s flag, one at a time, and their names will be called out, and whoever would like to take the flag out to the field and post it may do so.”

Zimmer said it takes a lot of T-L-C and unconditional love to put on an event this big for the community. He explained that seeing people come out and pay their respects to those who fought for our freedom is the most rewarding thing.

“Aww it makes me feel great when I see other parents come and see that their son or daughter is not forgotten,” he said. “I got goosebumps, and it’s been almost 10 years I’ve been doing this.”

The event has become such a success in Ohio that Zimmer said other states are now considering hosting similar events.