Desecrating the Canadian Flag in Delhi.....

This story speaks for itself, but in my opinion the Grand Erie District School Board owes someone a public apology.

'Desecrated' flag going to Afghanistan
Posted By Daniel Pearce and Monte Sonnenberg, SIMCOE REFORMER
Posted 3 hours ago


A Canadian flag abandoned amid the rubble and mud of Delhi's partially demolished high school is headed to Afghanistan.

Capt. Robin Cooke, a former teacher at the school who is now a soldier, was angered when he saw the soiled flag in a puddle in front of the school on Aug. 1.

"I was just stunned. I was shocked it would be there," Cooke told the Reformer from Petawawa, where he is preparing to serve in Afghanistan. "It's just outrageous."

Former Delhi District Secondary School principal Herb Ibbotson brought the flag to Cooke's attention. Together they pulled it from the mud and cleaned it off. It is now with Cooke, who plans to take it with him next month to Afghanistan, "a place where hundreds of Canadians wear the flag proudly on their uniforms."

Cooke and Ibbotson blame the Grand Erie District School Board for leaving the flag flying in front of the school instead of taking it down for the summer.

"If I could see it from the highway, their foreman could have seen it too," said Ibbotson, who described the flag as "desecrated." "They could have picked it up instead of leaving it in the mud. It was not a pretty picture."

Ibbotson found the sight of a Canadian flag mired in the mud in downtown Delhi ironic because two men from the small town -- Cooke and Gunner Kyle Langas -- are preparing to fight for Canadian values in wartorn Afghanistan. The pair will ship out in the next rotation.


http://simcoereformer.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1164505

As a people we dont seem to care about our country.Thats a shame its one of the best to live in

While Grand Erie was in the wrong for not taking the flag down for the summer, wouldn't it make sense to blame the demolition company also?

I'm sure that the crew working is Canadian and should have more pride than to let a flag fall by the wayside into a puddle. Surely one of the workers have a back that bends and could have easily picked it up and placed it somewhere for a GEDSB member to retrieve it.

A few questions. Why would Herb bring it to the attention of Robin in Petawawa and not to the workers or the school board right away? And what would be the point of bringing the flag to Afganistan? I hope he doesn't bring his negative attitude with it! The Herb Robon como have a way of stirring things up and this is an obvious attempt to do the same. There are many who could have been approached before Herb's partner in anger hours away would need to be called. Allowing the flag to lie in the dirt was a bad idea and it should never have happened, but the way in which Herb and Robin dealt with it was far from appropriate as well.

1. Why was the flag left up after school was finished in June?
2. Shouldn't the Principal have had enough sense to remove it?
3. If the Principal didn't remove it, shouldn't the head caretaker had enough sense to remove it?
4. How is it the Grand Erie school board's fault?
5. Are the 3 Norfolk Trustees responsible for leaving the flag up?
6. Is the Director of Education responsible?
7. Did no one notice the flag flying in July?
8. Why is this a big news story?

Bottom line -- the Principal of the high school is responsible. He should know the flag etiquette and have enough sense to have removed it when school was finished at the end of June. The two from Delhi who brought this to our attention obviously have an agenda.

40 years ago, a family member was a custodian for the Norfolk Board. The flag had to be raised every morning and lowered every evening.

When did this change? Too much work? Not on their contract? It kept the flag in better condition for a longer time. It did not fly on weekends or holidays. Now flags seem to fly all the time in all kinds of weather and be completely ignored. Some of them get very ragged and no one even seems to notice.

I remember kids having the task of taking the flag down when I first started teaching. And that was a privilege. Kids liked that.

However, I think this is a huge overreaction. Take it to Afghanistan? What for?? I think the soldiers over there have better things to do than listen to the story of the flag in the rubble at DDSS!! I think Mr. Cooke will be seeing LOTS of rubble in Afghanistan! This issue will pale in comparison to the destruction he might see over there! (He might even see people and body parts in the Afghani rubble!)

DDSS is being demolished??

Justice wrote:

DDSS is being demolished??

The old end of the school!

Leslie wrote:

Justice wrote:

DDSS is being demolished??

The old end of the school!

oh ok.. I don't come to Norfolk very often and when I do.. never venture out to Delhi so, I'm out of the loop..lol

when I was in public school that the end we went to for home ec classes

Lets see if I have the story straight. The school does not take the flag down after each day. A high wind tears the flag and its rope off the pole and throws it into a tree. The construction crew needs to remove the tree the following day, so they remove the flag and hang it over the retaining wall, a three foot wall at the front of the school for the caretaker to put away. The care taker was not there that day but, on the following day, comes to remove it only to find Herb and the good captain behind the "No Trespassing" barricades, removing the flag off the wall. Since Robin took pictures of the flag, it was easy to tell that the flag was not in the mud, but hanging on a wall. The flag is also school property, so, not only are the two trespassing, they are also stealing somethng that does not belong to them. I guess their pride in Canada does not include following the laws of the country. Only the ones that suit their needs.

If you were to check the track record of this fine captain and the terms under which he left DDSS, it is not a wonder why he took this opportunity to slam the school and the board. This mentality is part of his legacy, as well as that of the former principal who hired the captain. Because of this, I would not give too much credence to this story, nor the seriousness of it. True, there were some issues that need to be dealt with, but not nearly to the extreme as stated by Captain Cooke. I wonder if the OPP lower their flag every day. Or, for that matter, how many of us.

Berend wrote:

If you were to check the track record of this fine captain and the terms under which he left DDSS, it is not a wonder why he took this opportunity to slam the school and the board. This mentality is part of his legacy, as well as that of the former principal who hired the captain. Because of this, I would not give too much credence to this story, nor the seriousness of it. True, there were some issues that need to be dealt with, but not nearly to the extreme as stated by Captain Cooke. I wonder if the OPP lower their flag every day. Or, for that matter, how many of us.

Okay, now we're getting somewhere. It's only fair for you to follow up with some details that can explain "the Captains" actions and your accusations of suspect motivation.

Let's ignore the logistics of how and why since board policies and safety statues are likely to be the actual culprit preventing anyone from protecting the flag without a bevy of memo's and being included in the multi million dollar bid/contract for the work.

Tell us what you can about the Captain and why this situation has become a cause 'celb' or a media magnet, and why?

How do they know the WIND didn't blow it off the wall and into the mud? It may have been "an act of nature!"

I agree with Berend. There does seem to be some agenda by these two men.
It appears they want to blame the Grand Erie school board as a whole entity for this.
But how can they do that when they both know there is a flag protocol for putting the
flag up and down each day?
This was pure and simple human error. The Principal and the Head Custodian, two
real people, have to shoulder the blame for this. I think it was very admirable of
the Grand Erie Board to accept responsiblity for this, as they should. But the anger
these two men have for the Board as a whole is entirely misplaced.