National 9/11 Flag Tour Stops in West Bloomfield

The National 9/11 Flag, also called The Spirit of America, was proudly displayed Sunday afternoon at the at the . Local service heroes had the opportunity to participate in an historic task — stitching the flag back to its original 13-stripe format.

The 30-foot flag is worn and discolored, its once-proud stars and stripes a shadow of their former glory, the fabric riddled with holes, patches and mended spots. However, this particular Old Glory still brought tears to the eyes of many attendees at Sunday's ceremony as the large crowd in the Berman Theatre reverently placed hands over hearts and recited the Pledge of Allegiance.

The National 9/11 Flag was the largest flag to fly over ground zero after the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, according to organizers from the New York Says Thank You Foundation. Organizers said the flag flew from the side of a nearly demolished building at 90 West St. in New York City, directly across from ground zero.

As the months of rebuilding and recovery went on, the flag's stars and stripes faded; it was torn and tattered by flapping against scaffolding and from debris from the decimated World Trade Center's twin towers.

Organizers explained that Charlie Vitchers, a construction manager working on the massive cleanup at ground zero, watched with dismay as the flag slowly fell victim to the elements. In October 2001, he sent a crew up the building to rescue the flag and took the flag home with him, intending to retire it properly.

Life intervened, and seven years later, he still had the flag with him when he traveled to Greensburg, KS, to assist with tornado recovery efforts. There, local disaster survivors and volunteers worked together to stitch the flag back together, using pieces of other damaged flags destined for retirement.

Thus began the flag's journey and its new life as a national symbol of hope and of service and volunteerism in America.

Today, the flag is on a 50-state tour organized by the New York Says Thank You Foundation. Local veterans, wounded warriors, law enforcement personnel, fire department personnel, 9/11 family members, first responders, educators, students and community service heroes all help to restore the National 9/11 flag to its former glory by stitching in fabric taken from retired American flags from every state.

Every attendee who wished to was also given a chance to sew a stitch, and the line was long as people patiently waited their turn.

"I talked with war veterans and people who have devoted their lives to various types of service who have said that stitching the National 9/11 Flag was the most important thing they've ever done in their lives," said Jeff Parness, founder and chairman of the New York Says Thank You Foundation.

"That's incredible when you think about it," he said. "The National 9/11 Flag reminds us that as Americans, we are all connected — we're all in this together."

The flag is scheduled to be completed by the 10th anniversary of 9/11 this September, at which time it will grace the walls of the National September 11 Museum in New York City.