thedrifter
07-02-05, 07:15 AM
Courtesy of Mark aka The Fontman
Acuity raises Old Glory Atop tallest flagpole in the nation
By Eric LaRose
Sheboygan Press staff
For Matthew Taub, 23, a marketing analyst with Sheboygan-based insurer Acuity, Friday's dedication of the company's massive flag and flagpole - the tallest in the United States - had special significance.
Today, he's being deployed to Iraq for 18 to 24 months with the Army National Guard 120th Field Artillery Regiment.
Taub is one of 17 Acuity employees connected with the military who had the honor of carrying the 7,200-square-foot flag to the 338-foot pole for its first official flight Friday.
"It's amazing, the way it went up and just opened up," Taub said. "It was just huge. Just having people drive by and honk their horns, it sends shivers down your spine."
The new pole is more than twice the height of the one it replaced, a 150-foot pole toppled late last year by a 40 mph gust of wind. Erected in 2003 as part of Acuity's $45 million expansion, the original pole carried a flag one-fourth the size of the one unfurled Friday.
The new pole and flag have been dedicated to Sheboygan veterans.
"I'm really happy the flag is going to be flying," Ben Salzmann, Acuity president and CEO, said during Friday's flag-raising ceremony. "While today is great, the thing I'm thinking of ... (is) we're going to see it every day going forward. It will still be there tomorrow, and it will still be there decades from now."
An estimated 2,000 people, many of whom were Acuity employees and veterans, attended the ceremony and watched intently as the colossal flag made its slow inaugural ascent up the pole.
Many veterans welled up with tears as they watched.
Bernard Dedering, 74, a member of VFW Post 9156 who attended the event with fellow post member Jerry Gabrish, 82, and his wife Pat, 57, beamed with pride as the flag unfurled.
"We Americans as a group are pretty self-critical," Dedering said. "When something like this takes place, then the patriotism comes out. I'm glad to see that, because we've got something to be proud of."
Charles Watry, 65, a Vietnam veteran and member of American Legion Post 470 from Saukville, took photos of the flag as it flapped in the wind.
"It makes me think about the freedoms we have, and what it costs to have those freedoms," Watry said. "Many people forget that. It means the world to me and my family, and the fact that we can live free."
Others saw the flag as a symbol of the American Dream.
Miriam Schnur, 27, was born in Leon, Mexico, a large, poverty-ridden city, she said. She came to the United States, studied to become a citizen and now works for Acuity.
"I look back and think, 'Where would I be if I was back there?' I would never be in a corporate setting," she said. "I would never even be able to own a car."
At night, she can see the flagpole from the window of her house, Schnur said. When she saw the flag raised on a test run several nights ago, emotion overcame her.
"When they started pulling it up and it was twirling around, I just started crying," Schnur said. "That's part of me, especially because of the fact that I became a citizen. I just absolutely adore it."
The company will have a more somber ceremony later this summer when it unveils a teardrop-shaped memorial to local veterans, Salzmann said.
Taub, who has been with Acuity for a year, is happy to know when he returns from active duty he will return to something unforgettable.
"It really put Sheboygan on the map," Taub said. "It will definitely be nice to come home to."
Ellie
Acuity raises Old Glory Atop tallest flagpole in the nation
By Eric LaRose
Sheboygan Press staff
For Matthew Taub, 23, a marketing analyst with Sheboygan-based insurer Acuity, Friday's dedication of the company's massive flag and flagpole - the tallest in the United States - had special significance.
Today, he's being deployed to Iraq for 18 to 24 months with the Army National Guard 120th Field Artillery Regiment.
Taub is one of 17 Acuity employees connected with the military who had the honor of carrying the 7,200-square-foot flag to the 338-foot pole for its first official flight Friday.
"It's amazing, the way it went up and just opened up," Taub said. "It was just huge. Just having people drive by and honk their horns, it sends shivers down your spine."
The new pole is more than twice the height of the one it replaced, a 150-foot pole toppled late last year by a 40 mph gust of wind. Erected in 2003 as part of Acuity's $45 million expansion, the original pole carried a flag one-fourth the size of the one unfurled Friday.
The new pole and flag have been dedicated to Sheboygan veterans.
"I'm really happy the flag is going to be flying," Ben Salzmann, Acuity president and CEO, said during Friday's flag-raising ceremony. "While today is great, the thing I'm thinking of ... (is) we're going to see it every day going forward. It will still be there tomorrow, and it will still be there decades from now."
An estimated 2,000 people, many of whom were Acuity employees and veterans, attended the ceremony and watched intently as the colossal flag made its slow inaugural ascent up the pole.
Many veterans welled up with tears as they watched.
Bernard Dedering, 74, a member of VFW Post 9156 who attended the event with fellow post member Jerry Gabrish, 82, and his wife Pat, 57, beamed with pride as the flag unfurled.
"We Americans as a group are pretty self-critical," Dedering said. "When something like this takes place, then the patriotism comes out. I'm glad to see that, because we've got something to be proud of."
Charles Watry, 65, a Vietnam veteran and member of American Legion Post 470 from Saukville, took photos of the flag as it flapped in the wind.
"It makes me think about the freedoms we have, and what it costs to have those freedoms," Watry said. "Many people forget that. It means the world to me and my family, and the fact that we can live free."
Others saw the flag as a symbol of the American Dream.
Miriam Schnur, 27, was born in Leon, Mexico, a large, poverty-ridden city, she said. She came to the United States, studied to become a citizen and now works for Acuity.
"I look back and think, 'Where would I be if I was back there?' I would never be in a corporate setting," she said. "I would never even be able to own a car."
At night, she can see the flagpole from the window of her house, Schnur said. When she saw the flag raised on a test run several nights ago, emotion overcame her.
"When they started pulling it up and it was twirling around, I just started crying," Schnur said. "That's part of me, especially because of the fact that I became a citizen. I just absolutely adore it."
The company will have a more somber ceremony later this summer when it unveils a teardrop-shaped memorial to local veterans, Salzmann said.
Taub, who has been with Acuity for a year, is happy to know when he returns from active duty he will return to something unforgettable.
"It really put Sheboygan on the map," Taub said. "It will definitely be nice to come home to."
Ellie