The Silver Star Families of America (SSFOA) is a 501(c) tax exempt organization dedicated to honoring and supporting wounded, ill and injured veterans of all branches of the armed forces of the United States of America. [1] The organization was founded in 2004 by Steve and Diana Newton with the assistance of Joseph and Sharon Newton and the entire Newton family. [2] It is not related to the military decoration designated the Silver Star.
The tradition of a service banner with a blue star covered with silver threads to represent wounded service personnel began in 1917 [3] or 1918 [4] following the suggestion of Women's Committee of the Council of National Defenses, [4] but faded from use sometime between World War I and World War II. [5] When the use of Blue and Gold Star Service Banners was formally adopted into the United States Code and made official, [6] the tradition of the Silver Star Banner was overlooked.
The Department of Defense, given the authority to govern the use of the service banners, [6] concluded that existing Blue Star Service Banner or Gold Star Service Banners and Flags could not be altered. [6] A new Silver Star Service Flag and Banner were designed and were quickly accepted widely used throughout the United States. [7]
The Silver Star Service Flag/Banner are trademarked. The name "Silver Star Service Banner" is TM. [8]
The actual Silver Star Service Banner is 8.5" x 14." [7]
Footnote to service banner history: there is also a "War Mothers" Flag that was first flown over the capitol on Veterans Day in 1926. This Flag is still flown every year on Veterans Day starting at 11 minutes after 11 o'clock to sundown. [9]
The Silver Star Service Flag and Banner are symbols to remind Americans of the sacrifice made for them by so many. [4]
The Silver Star Service Banner is reserved for those who have been wounded, contracted a serious illness or injury in a war zone. [10]
The Silver Star Service Flag may be flown by anyone as a symbols of remembrance and honor.
It may be flown during war or peacetime.
If flown with the United States Flag, the Silver Star Service Flag must be lower and/or of a smaller size than the United States Flag. [11]
Disposal methods are the same as those of the United States Flag. [12]
Qualifications for receiving the Silver Star Service Banner are located here: [10]
Note: The grommets from a properly disposed of Flag can be cleaned and given as recognition for service.
It was also believed that there should be a day set aside to remember the sacrifices of the wounded and ill: So the SSFOA petitioned the states to make May 1 Silver Star Service Banner Day. [13]
To date, 50 states, Guam, Saipan, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Chickasaw Nation and the District of Columbia has issued proclamations recognizing the Silver Star Families of America and Silver Star Service Banner Day. Over 2,900 cities and counties have also signed on. [3] [14]
The State of Missouri has made the day into law. [15]
Silver Star Service Banner Day is now in the United States Congress. [16]
On April 21, 2010, the United States House of Representatives passed H Res. 855, a stand-alone resolution, making the SSFOA Silver Star Service Banner official and making May 1 Silver Star Service Banner Day. [17]
"Resolved, That the House of Representatives supports the designation of 'Silver Star Service Banner Day' and calls upon the people of the United States to observe the day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.". [18]
On May 19, 2010, the United States Senate followed suit and approved Senate Resolution 534 and it was sent to the President of the United States. [19]
"Resolved, That the Senate designates May 1, 2010, as 'Silver Star Service Banner Day' and calls upon the people of the United States to observe the day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities."
On April 29, 2011, the President of the United States Barack Obama issued this statement: "When our men and women in uniform return from deployment, it is our moral obligation and great honor to serve them as well as they served us. Our debt of gratitude extends to their families and friends, who embody the same qualities of bravery, sacrifice and duty exhibited by their loved ones. On Silver Star Service Banner Day, we recommit to caring for those who return to us wounded or ill, and we remain humbled by the heroic contributions they have made to our Nation." [20]
Like many organizations, the Silver Star Families of America has a Challenge Coin.
A flag is a piece of fabric with distinctive colours and design. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed, and flags have evolved into a general tool for rudimentary signalling and identification, especially in environments where communication is challenging. Many flags fall into groups of similar designs called flag families. The study of flags is known as "vexillology" from the Latin vexillum, meaning "flag" or "banner".
The national flag of the United States, often referred to as the American flag or the U.S. flag, consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, alternating red and white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows, where rows of six stars alternate with rows of five stars. The 50 stars on the flag represent the 50 U.S. states, and the 13 stripes represent the thirteen British colonies that won independence from Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War.
A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a given nation. It is flown by the government of that nation, but can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanings for its colours and symbols, which may also be used separately from the flag as a symbol of the nation. The design of a national flag is sometimes altered after the occurrence of important historical events. The burning or destruction of a national flag is a greatly symbolic act.
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written by American lawyer Francis Scott Key on September 14, 1814, after he witnessed the bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British Royal Navy during the Battle of Baltimore in the War of 1812. Key was inspired by the large U.S. flag, with 15 stars and 15 stripes, known as the Star-Spangled Banner, flying triumphantly above the fort after the battle.
The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and the "Blood-Stained Banner", used in 1865 shortly before the Confederacy's dissolution. A rejected national flag design was also used as a battle flag by the Confederate Army and featured in the "Stainless Banner" and "Blood-Stained Banner" designs. Although this design was never a national flag, it is the most commonly recognized symbol of the Confederacy.
The "Bonnie Blue flag" was a banner associated at various times with the Republic of Texas, the short-lived Republic of West Florida, and the Confederate States of America at the start of the American Civil War in 1861. It consists of a single, five-pointed white star on a blue field. Its first use being as early as 1810, it is considered the first lone star flag in U.S. history.
The national flag of the Philippines is a horizontal bicolor flag with equal bands of royal blue and crimson red, with a white, equilateral chevron at the hoist. In the center of the triangle is a golden-yellow sun with eight primary rays, to represent the original eight provinces that rebelled against the Spanish during the 1896 Philippine Revolution. At each vertex of the triangle is a five-pointed, golden-yellow star, each of which representing one of the country's three main island groups—Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The white triangle at the hoist represents liberty, equality, and fraternity. A unique feature of this flag is its usage to indicate a state of war if it is displayed with the red side on top, which is effectively achieved by flipping the flag upside-down.
Fort McHenry is a historical American coastal pentagonal bastion fort on Locust Point, now a neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. It is best known for its role in the War of 1812, when it successfully defended Baltimore Harbor from an attack by the British navy from Chesapeake Bay on September 13–14, 1814.
The Lone Star Flag is the official flag of the U.S. state of Texas. The flag, flown at homes and businesses statewide, is highly popular among Texans and is treated with a great degree of reverence and esteem within Texas. Along with the flag of Hawaii, it is one of two state flags to have previously served as a national flag of an independent country. In 2001, the North American Vexillological Association surveyed its members on the designs of the 72 U.S. state, territorial, and Canadian provincial flags and ranked the Texas flag second, behind New Mexico.
The several branches of the United States Armed Forces are represented by flags. Within the U.S. military, various flags fly on various occasions, and on various ships, bases, camps, and military academies.
The national flag of Cuba consists of five alternating stripes and a red equilateral triangle at the hoist, within which is a white five-pointed star. It was designed in 1849 and officially adopted May 20, 1902. The flag is referred to as the Estrella Solitaria, or the Lone Star flag. It is in the stars and stripes flag family.
The flag of Washington, D.C., consists of three red stars above two red bars on a white background. It is an armorial banner based on the coat of arms granted to Lawrence Washington of Sulgrave Manor Northamptonshire, England, in 1592. This coat of arms was used privately by the president in his home at Mount Vernon. In heraldry, the stars are called mullets and the coat of arms is blazoned as argent two bars gules, in chief three mullets of the second.
A service flag or service banner is a banner that family members of those serving in the United States Armed Forces can display. The flag or banner is officially defined as a white field with a red border, with a blue star for each family member serving in the Armed Forces of the United States during any period of war or hostilities. A gold star represents a family member who died during military operations, including those who died during World War I, World War II, or any subsequent period of armed hostilities in which the United States was engaged before July 1, 1958, and those who lost or lose their lives after June 30, 1958:
The Christian Flag is an ecumenical flag designed in the late 19th century to represent much of Christianity and Christendom. Since its adoption by the United States Federal Council of Churches in 1942, it has had varied usage by congregations of many Christian traditions, including Anglican, Baptist, Congregationalist, Lutheran, Mennonite, Methodist, Moravian, Presbyterian, and Reformed, among others.
The Australian red ensign is the civil ensign of Australia, the flag of nationality flown by Australian registered ships. It is a red version of the national flag, which is mainly blue. Both flags resulted from the Commonwealth Government's 1901 Federal Flag Design Competition which required two entries: an ensign for Commonwealth Government use and another for the merchant navy. The winning design for the merchant ensign was based on the traditional British red ensign and featured the Southern Cross and Commonwealth Star.
Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week is an observance in the United States that pays tribute to the local, state, and federal peace officers who have died, or who have been disabled, in the line of duty. It is celebrated May 15 of each year. The event is sponsored by the National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and is implemented by the FOP Memorial Committee.
The Star-Spangled Banner, or the Great Garrison Flag, was the garrison flag that flew over Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor during the naval portion of the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812. It is on exhibit at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. Seeing the flag flying over Fort McHenry on the morning of September 14, 1814, after the battle ended, Francis Scott Key was inspired to write the poem "Defence of Fort M'Henry". These words were written by Key and set to the tune of "To Anacreon in Heaven", a popular song at the time, by John Stafford Smith. In 1931 the song became the national anthem of the United States.
The National League of Families POW/MIA flag, often referred to as the POW/MIA flag, was adopted in 1972 and consists of the official emblem of the National League of Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia in white on a black background. In 2019, the National POW/MIA Flag Act was signed into law, requiring the POW/MIA flag to be flown on certain federal properties, including the U.S. Capitol Building, on all days the U.S. flag is flown.
A rear admiral in four of the uniformed services of the United States is one of two distinct ranks of commissioned officers; "rear admiral (lower half)," a one-star flag officer, and "rear admiral" (sometimes referred to as "rear admiral (upper half)"), a two-star flag officer. The two ranks are only utilized by the United States Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps. In contrast, in most other nations' rank-bearing services, the term "rear admiral" refers exclusively to two-star flag officer rank.
The flag of the president of the United States consists of the presidential coat of arms on a dark blue background. While having the same design as the presidential seal since 1945, the flag has a separate history, and the designs on the flag and seal have at different times influenced each other. The flag is often displayed by the president in official photos, or flown next to the casket of a former president in official funeral processions, and flown on the president's motorcade. The flag is not flown at half-staff since there is always an incumbent president in office. The current flag is defined in Executive Order 10860:
The Color and Flag of the President of the United States shall consist of a dark blue rectangular background of sizes and proportions to conform to military and naval custom, on which shall appear the Coat of Arms of the President in proper colors. The proportions of the elements of the Coat of Arms shall be in direct relation to the hoist, and the fly shall vary according to the customs of the military and naval services.