By Garrett Mitchell
Woodruff High School’s annual Field of Flags is once again on display for Veterans Day, honoring veterans across all service branches while raising money for a charity that supports those who have served in the United States armed forces.
Now in its fourth year, the event is organized by Maroon on a Mission and led by Woodruff High School teacher Sara Beth McGregor. Each flag in the field honors a veteran and is sponsored by a small donation. The money raised through flag sponsorships goes to a veterans charity.
This year’s chosen charity was Upstate Warrior Solution. Maroon on a Mission raised $775 and planted 195 flags, making it the group’s largest Veterans Day display to date.
“We were able to put out 195 flags,” explained McGregor. “People were able to sponsor flags in honor or in memory of veterans and loved ones that have served in the Armed Forces. With this we were able to raise $775 for Upstate Warrior Solution. This cause is very near and dear to my heart. I had seen it done in other areas that have a bigger military presence, and I thought that our little community should do the same to honor those that have served.”
The students involved in Maroon on a Mission volunteered their time to make this event its most successful yet. They spent an afternoon arranging and planting the flags in front of Woodruff High School, where passersby and campus visitors can see them.
For McGregor, being able to honor veterans is a special opportunity to show appreciation for those who have served or made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our nation.
“I’ve had multiple family members that were in various branches of the military,” she said. “My father-in-law was in the Army, my grandfather was in the Army, and I think we all have at least one person that we know that has been in the military. As a society, we need to honor those who felt the call to serve our nation.”
Below are the names and service branches listed for this year’s Field of Flags.
In Honor
- Jerry L. Adams – Army
- Tommy Bailey – Air Force
- Daniel Ball – Air Force
- Gary Barker – Air Force
- Brian Bass – Navy
- Timothy Baum – Air Force
- Charles Bennett – Air Force
- James R. Brittain – Army
- Wayne Brown – Navy
- Mark Buhler – Marines
- Steve Butler – Marines
- Aulbrey Calvert – Army
- Paul Campbell – Air Force
- Justin Carroll – Marines
- Henley Chappell – Navy
- Dustin Childress – Marines
- Andy Clark – Army
- Terry Clark – National Guard
- Earl Clary – Army
- Richard Clary – Coast Guard
- Jesse P. Cox – Navy
- Katharine “Katie” E Cox – Air Force
- Owen M. Cox – Marines
- Sammy Steven Cox – Navy
- Theodore Craig – Army
- Bobby Edwards – Navy
- Fischer Family – Marines
- Ken Fray – Air Force
- Milton Gassaway – Marines
- Charles Edward Gilliam – Navy
- Angie Gore – Navy
- Hank Gore, Sr. – Navy
- Carroll Guffey – Army
- Travis Guffey – Army
- Jason Haney – Army
- Matthew Harakas – Army
- Danny Hines – Army
- Dayton Hines – Army
- GM2 Curtis Gavin Hughes – Navy
- Robert A. Hulse – Navy
- Paul Jones – Army Reserves
- Travis Kinlaw – Marines
- Clay Kullman – Army
- David W. Laws – Navy
- Col Mark T. Leonard – Air Force
- Nathan Lewis – Navy
- Jamie Long – Army
- Benny Mahaffey – Army
- Bruce Mahaffey
- Vance Mahaffey
- Elwin McGregor, Jr – Army
- Benny McHaffey – Army
- Johnny Montjoy – Marines
- Johnny Montjoy – Marines
- Josh Montjoy – Coast Guard
- James Murrell – Army
- Eric J. Osborne – National Guard
- Carter Owens – National Guard
- Terry Owens – Navy
- Xavier Paddie – Air Force
- Sean Painter – Navy
- 1st Sgt Jacob “Ret” Perry – Marines
- Joe Piatt – Navy
- Brandon Prince – Marines
- Charlie Ramey – Navy
- Chip Reeves – Air Force
- Justin Roper – Navy
- Matthew Roper – Marines
- Russell Sewell – Air Force
- Virgil Simmons – Army
- Rex Skinner – Army
- Johnny Sloan – National Guard
- Thomas Smith – Army
- Mike Socorro – Marines
- Joey Stevens – Air Force
- Johnny Stribble – Army
- Dean Toney – Army
- Darrell Turner – Army
- Alex VanMeter – Army National Guard
- Antioch Baptist Church Veterans
- Switzer First Baptist Church Veterans
- Jeff Waldrop – Army
- Lt Col Kirck Wallace – Army
- Jerry Wardlow – Army
- Ed Wilkerson – Army
- Clay Williams – Marines
- Jeff Wood – Air Force
- Anthony Wright – Navy
In Memory
- Edward Ambler – Air Force
- George Bass – Navy
- Donald W. Boyter – Air Force
- Edward Lee Boyter – Army
- Benny Brittain – Army
- Edward K. Brittain – Army
- Willie Robert Brown – Air Force
- Kemper “Buck” Brownlee, Jr. – Army
- Thomas Burch – Army
- Larry Michael Burrell – Navy
- Dale Cantrell – Air Force
- Sam Cathcart – Army
- George H. Cheek, Jr. – Army
- H R “Bud” Cherry – Army
- Rick Cherry – Air Force
- Bruce Clark – Army
- Bobby Cochran – Navy
- Brock Coggins – Army
- C. Keith Cox – Army
- Cecil Cox – Navy
- Gene Crocker – Army
- Bryant Deaton – Army
- Barbara Disbrow – Navy
- George Disbrow – Navy
- Jeff Dorr – Marines
- Johnny Douglas – Army
- Paul Farmer – Marine Corps
- Thomas O. Fowler – Army
- Horace “Pee Wee” Garrett – Marines
- Charles Gassaway – Army
- James “Bub” Gates – Army
- Paul “Pee Wee” Gates – Navy
- Walter Gilbert, Jr – National Guard
- Don Gillespie – Air Force
- James Gillespie – Air Force
- Charles W. Grogan – Army
- Winfred Guffey – Army
- Richard L. Hardee – Navy
- Steve Hardee – Air Force
- Robert E. Hayes – Navy
- Hubert Hill – Army
- Hugh A. Hughes – Army
- Ronald K. Hughes – Navy
- Stephen R. Hughes – Army
- William R. Hughes – Air Force
- Charles Lancaster – Air Force
- Bill Lawless – Army
- David D. Laws – Army
- Buster Lawson – National Guard
- H. Gene Lee – Air Force
- James Lee – Coast Guard
- Lt Col William C Leondard, Jr – Air Force
- Warren Libka, Sr. – Marines
- Allen Lester Long – Marines
- Fred Mahaffey
- Steve McAbee – Air Force
- James McCarter – Army
- Elwin McGregor, Sr – Merchant Marines
- Claude A. McMillan – Air Force
- Herman Melton – Navy
- Johnnie B. Moore – Army
- Joe Narvaez – Army
- Wilburn Phillips – Army
- Bill Ramey – Navy
- Herbert Rogers – Navy
- Lester C. Rogers – Army
- Wirron “Hun” Rogers – Army
- Leroy Sellars – Air Force
- Floyd Sewell – Air Force
- Arthur Dupree Simmons – Army
- George Oren Simmons – Army
- James Arthur Simmons – Navy
- Lewis Simmons – Army
- Garvin Sloan – Air Force
- Bill Smith – Navy
- William “Bill” Snyder – Army
- Thomas Soper – Air Force
- Herbert Sparks – Navy
- James Sparks – Navy
- Bill Strickland – Army
- Lester S. Sturgill – Marine Corps
- Thomas Jackson Sturgill – Army
- William N. “Newt” Sturgill – Army
- Tim Taker – Marines
- Dan Tate – Army
- James Otts Turner – Air Force
- Theodore H. Turner – Army
- Thomas F. Turner – Army
- Thomas Finch Turner – Army
- William Lee Turner – Army
- James Vaughn – Navy
- Antioch Baptist Church Veterans
- Switzer First Baptist Church Veterans
- John “JT” Waddell – Army
- Colonel Malcom Wallace – Army
- John E. Watson – Army
- John Weathers – Army
- Joe Welborn – Army Air Force
- Robert Westmoreland – Army
- Yates Henry White – Navy
- Bob Williams, Sr – Army
- Earl Williams, Sr – Army
- Oneal Wood – Army
- Maury Word – Navy
- Arthur Wright – Army
- Stan Yarborough – Army
