Preston Sharp and his organization, Veterans Flags and Flowers, will be honoring each of the 3,000 veterans buried at Redding Memorial Park on Continental Street. Sharp had expressed dismay when a misunderstanding led him to believe his mission would be curtailed. Sharp and his cadre of volunteers have placed flags and flowers at the grave sites of more than a million veterans across the country and beyond over the years since he started with his grandfather’s grave at that same Redding cemetery. This year the staff told Sharp that they would be honoring veterans at the Elks Lodge for Veterans Day and he took that to mean that they didn’t want him to do what he’s always done. It’s been cleared up and the honor will be done November 1st, with the cemetery providing 3,000 flags for the effort.
– Steve Gibson