NEWS RELEASE                                                                                                                               FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:  Bob De Witt, Boy Scouts of America, Greater Pittsburgh Council, 412-325-7992
                   Ellen Wedner, National Flag Foundation, 412-261-1776
                 
                  Flag Plaza, 1275 Bedford Ave., Pittsburgh (Uptown, next to Mellon Arena)

 
NATIONAL FLAG FOUNDATION, BOY SCOUTS TO MARK FLAG DAY ON JUNE 14

(June 3, 2005 – Pittsburgh, PA) The Boy Scouts of America – Greater Pittsburgh Council, National Flag Foundation and Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society will hold the Flags Across America Flag Day- New Constellation Celebration at 8 am on Tuesday, June 14, 2005.

The organizations urge every American citizen and guest of the U.S.A. to raise the United States flag this day at their place of residence and business. There are 16 National Flag Foundation Flags Across America sites in the United States that will be participating in Flag Day Celebrations.

Flag Plaza in Pittsburgh, headquarters of the Boy Scouts, Greater Pittsburgh Council and National Flag Foundation will be the site of the main event for the Flag Day Celebration. The Boy Scouts and NFF will co-host the festivities as five flags are hoisted, including a special American flag whose stars were hand cut by the nation's governors in 1987. Representatives of local, state and national lawmakers are expected to attend, along with Boy Scouts and other volunteers.

One goal of the Flag Day celebration is to put the flag back into Flag Day and build upon the swell of patriotism and love for the flag and our country that America has enjoyed in recent years.

Congress adopted the first flag resolution on June 14, 1777, which stated "that the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation." In 1916 President Woodrow Wilson first recognized Flag Day as the official birthday of the U.S. flag. President Harry S Truman signed the Flag Act of Congress on August 3, 1949, making Flag Day a national day of celebration in honor of our flag. 

National Flag Foundation invites corporations, organizations and citizens across the nation to raise their flags, recite the Pledge of Allegiance and hold patriotic ceremonies in their communities on Flag Day in order for all Americans to show support and respect for our country’s founding ideals and principles. For additional information about NFF, flag etiquette publications or patriotism programs for schools, call 800.615.1776 or visit www.americanflags.org.

Boy Scouts of America, Greater Pittsburgh Council serves more than 48,000 youth each year across southwestern Pennsylvania, including Allegheny, Beaver, Greene, Washington and parts of Westmoreland and Fayette counties. The Council’s mission is to help instill values in young people by building the cornerstone of their character in ethics, morality and commitment, while preparing them for life’s challenges.