Poulton’s Flag to be Properly Folded at Sports Barber
ZANESVILLE, Ohio – The 75 year old flag that covered the casket of
an Ohio World War II veteran in 1945 will be folded properly on
Tuesday morning in Zanesville. The sister of Paul Poulton donated a
box of her brothers service artifacts—including his flag and Purple
Heart—to the Sports Barber, on Linden Avenue earlier this year.
Poulton died serving his country in the Battle of the Bulge on
January 14, 1945. Mike DeBolt, US Veteran and owner of the Sports
Barber, says he feels honored to display Poulton’s artifacts in his
shop.
“Oh, it’s an
honor—I’d never met this woman in my life and now she’s a good
friend of mine. She shows up every couple of weeks to check on me.
And, you know having this flag—it’s sad, I can’t believe it
wasn’t folded correctly when she got it so it sat in a box for 75
years. So, I figured it was a good time to get it folded correctly
and put into a shadow box.”
The Duncan Falls VFW
will be present at the Sports Barber on Tuesday morning at 9 to fold
the flag properly and explain what each fold signifies. Ron Gottke,
with the Duncan Falls VFW, says there are many reasons that the flag
is folded a certain way.
“We fold it in
such a manner that you’ll have 13 stars showing on the front and
also it means to honor the dead that has passed in the military—and
a symbol, and the third thing is for our nation’s motto which is
‘In God We Trust’.”
Paul Poulton served
in the 50th Armored Infantry during World War II. The 75
year old flag—which has just 48 stars—will be displayed in a
shadow box at the Sports Barber for the public to appreciate.
