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Dear Neighbor,
In 1958 when Alaska and Hawaii were being considered for statehood, more than 1,500 designs for American flags were randomly submitted to President Dwight D. Eisenhower by Americans throughout the country. In Lancaster, Ohio, a shy, young 17-year-old named; Robert G. "Bob" Heft designed a 50-star flag as a school project. Heft was born in Saginaw, Michigan and lived with his grandparents at the time. He was always the type of kid who sat in the back of the class. Heft was not familiar with using a needle and thread and was unable to get help from his mother who feared her son's project would defile the sanctity of the American flag.
Over one weekend, Heft spent 12 1/2 hours sewing and arranging the new combination of stars. He unstitched the blue field from his family's 48-star flag, sewed in a new blue field, and used iron-on white fabric to add 100 hand-cut stars (50 on each side). Heft carefully arranged the 50 stars in five rows of six stars alternating with four rows of five stars. "The thing is to add it (a star) so no one can tell there is a change in the design;" Heft said. He was so successful in this that his teacher, Mr. Stanley Pratt, only gave him a B minus on the project. "He said it lacked originality and that "Anybody could make that flag." Mr. Pratt challenged Heft by agreeing to give him a higher grade if he could get Congress to accept the design. Heft took the flag to his congressman, Rep. Walter Moeller. Heft's flag design was selected and adopted by presidential proclamation after Alaska and before Hawaiiwas admitted into the union in 1959. Mr. Pratt kept his word and changed Heft's grade to an A for the project. Heft designed a 51-star version a few weeks later and claimed to have copyrighted designs for 51-star through 60-star American flags.
After graduating from college, Heft became a high school teacher, college professor, a motivational speaker and the Mayor of Napoleon, Ohio. Heft died of a heart attack at Covenant Medical Center in Saginaw, Michigan on December 12, 2009.
Yesterday was Independence Day, but today let's pay tribute to past achievements while supporting our children and their ideas for the future. We all have a role to play in the American experience and sometimes you just never know where your efforts will lead.
Respectfully,
Alderman Rey Colón
City of Chicago, 35th Ward
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3-day Festival Wristbands
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Community Services and Events |
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The City of Chicago will release the second phase roll out of grid garbage collection which will include all or some of the 35th Ward. The new grid has changed the routes of collection from non-linear routes to routes mapped out by the main streets and natural boundaries, all with the mission to create a balanced service, improve performance and save the city millions in operation costs. The implementation of the second phase of grid garbage will begin Monday, July 30th, 2012. We will post any updates, including maps and forms on our website at www.reycolon.org of potential day of service changes that will help you determine garbage pick up in your neighborhood.
Click on for Q & A on Grid Garbage Collection
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