McHenry resident puts on Flag Day ceremony Saturday: ‘We all have to have the spirit of the flag’

Residents gathered in the lobby of the assisted-living facility Heritage Woods of McHenry on Saturday to recognize Flag Day with music and reflection on the nation’s history.

Flag Day is designated to commemorate the adoption of the national flag. A day much like Constitution Day, it is important, but many do not celebrate it, 83-year-old Heritage Woods resident Jim Ogar said.

“This piece of cloth has been all over the world,” he said. “We all have to have the spirit of the flag.”

Ogar has been organizing the ceremony for five years, ever since he started living at the facility, 4609 W. Crystal Lake Road. The first Flag Day ceremony he went to had a low turnout, and he decided to take matters into his own hands.

“Only six people showed up, and it broke my heart,” he said. “So I said, ‘There’ll never be a Flag Day like this anymore.’ I said, ‘We’re going to remember how men fought for this flag.’”

Ogar also puts together ceremonies for Memorial Day and other patriotic holidays such as Independence Day and Veterans Day. Ogar lives with Parkinson’s disease, which makes planning these events harder each year, he said. However, he always receives help from his friends and fellow residents at the facility, such as Nancy Dow.

“A lot of people don’t realize what Flag Day is,” Dow said. “Coming from a military family, I have learned how important it is to honor the flag.”

Ogar is not a veteran himself because previous health issues prevented him from enlisting. Instead, he served his country by being both a Tinley Park firefighter and an Alsip police officer.

Remembering veterans is personally critical for Ogar because his mother-in-law served as a surgical nurse during World War II, and his father-in-law is a three-time Purple Heart recipient for his service in World War II and the Korean War.

Usually, members of the American Legion attend the ceremony, but they were unable to make it this year, Ogar said. This year, he brought in a band of McHenry High School students to perform songs such as the “The Star Spangled Banner” and “America the Beautiful.”

This year’s holiday was affected by polarizing views. President Donald Trump hosted a military parade Saturday, which also was his birthday, that cost an estimated $25 million to $45 million. Simultaneously, millions across the country in more than 1,500 cities protested the Trump administration in “No Kings Day of Defiance” rallies.

Dow said she is “very upset and concerned” with recent changes made by the Trump administration but tries not to let it diminish her patriotism for the country.

“I’m not a happy camper, but I put a smile on anyways,” she said.