Gitmo Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts Fly Flags in Honor of Fallen Scouts

Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Nathaniel Moger | A member of Boy Scouts Troop 435 from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba raises the national ensign during a flag flying ceremony at the Northeast Gate on U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, June 17, 2008. The flags will be sent to the families of the Boy Scouts killed when a tornado went through a western Iowa camp, June 12, 2008. The Northeast Gate separates the naval station from the rest of Cuba.  

GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA

06.18.2008

Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Nathaniel Moger 

Joint Task Force Guantanamo Public Affairs

By Nathaniel Moger
Joint Task Force Guantanamo Public Affairs

GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba – In a display of unity, compassion and grief, members of Boy Scouts Troop 435 and Cub Scouts Troop 3401 from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, flew four flags at the Northeast Gate June 17, 2008.

"We're here to fly flags for the four boys who died in the tornado back in the states," said Dave DeGroff, troop committee chairman.

On June 12, 2008, a tornado tore through a scout camp, killing four members of a Boy Scouts troop, generating national attention and affecting members of the Boy Scouts of America across the country. Performing the ceremony was a way for Troops 435 and 3401 to focus their emotions and thoughts.

"I have to say, a flag flying ceremony teaches them pride and respect," said scoutmaster Thomas Blitch. "Pride and respect for Boy Scout troops around the world."

Here, on foreign land, sunset ceremony was the backdrop for a time of reflection by scouts, scoutmasters and observers alike.

"It's just showing camaraderie with those Boy Scouts who lost their lives," said Degroff. "Even if we're not back in the states with them, we do mourn with them."

A flag flying ceremony, whether on a post flagpole or the mast of an underway ship, is meant to imbue the flag with the quality, character and history of the place. To get to the gate, the troops, parents and other service members from the naval station and Joint Task Force Guantanamo had to be escorted by the Marine Corps Security Force Company that patrols the fenceline between the naval station and the rest of Cuba. The Northeast Gate is the only entrance and is not readily accessible to the majority of naval station residents.

"For us, the Northeast Gate is a special place to have a flag flown," said Degroff. "It's a place not many get to visit or see and it's filled with history."

• Date Taken: 06.18.2008
• Date Posted: 06.27.2008 15:31
• Story ID: 20919
• Location: GUANTANAMO BAY, CU