By Jennifer Corr
Published in print on the Southampton Press and online at 27east.
Employees and visitors flooded out of Southampton Town Hall at 4 p.m. on Monday. Maria Hilkewicz, Town Hall custodian, followed, with the task of lowering the flag, which signifies the end of business hours.
“The other guy puts it up in the morning,” Ms. Hilkewicz said as she removed the flag from the pole. She said she enjoys that part of the job.
The American flag, celebrated on Flag Day last Friday, can be found anywhere from the local schools, courthouse, parks and even the front porch of a neighbor. How flags on public property are flown, in particular, can signal matters of national, state or local importance.
According to USA.gov, the U.S. flies the flag at half staff when the nation is in a period of mourning, which is decided by the president. On Memorial Day, the flag is lowered to half staff until noon, then it is raised to the top.
The last national period of mourning, according to halfstaff.org, was from June 1 to 4 to honor the victims of the May 31 Virginia Beach Municipal Center shooting, where 13 people, including the perpetrator, lost their lives.
Flags at U.S. embassies, legations, consular offices and other facilities abroad also were directed to lower their flags to half staff on June 1.
Local communities, companies, school districts and federal agencies can decide when to fly the flag at half staff for local periods of mourning, in such cases as the loss of a police officer, student or employee. State governors can also decide local and statewide periods of mourning.
According to Paul F. Rickenbach Jr., the mayor of East Hampton Village, the flag is flown at half staff when there is a presidential decree, a request from the state governor and occasionally when local individuals are remembered.
At Southampton Town Hall, the custodial staff lowers the flag to half staff when notification is received from the federal or state government. The town director of parks and recreation, Kristen Doulos, also noted that flags within parks are taken care of by employees, and that there are five flag stewards, all volunteers, who take responsibility for flags around town, including a flag in the New York Fireman’s Memorial Park in Flanders.
The last statewide direction from Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to lower the flags was on April 10, in honor of two Marine Corps reservists who were killed on April 8 in Parwan Province, Afghanistan.
“At the local level, the flag protocol is generally observed according to these federal and state rules. In the town it is implemented by the Building Maintenance/Facilities Management Department, as well as the maintenance division of the Parks and Recreation Department,” Southampton citizen advocate Ryan Horn wrote in an email. He added: “Generally, at least at the administrative buildings, the flags are hoisted at the start of business and lowered at the close of business.”
U.S. Code states that the flag should be flown from sunrise to sunset on buildings and stationary flag staffs in the open. However, a flag could be flown at night as long as it’s illuminated during the hours of darkness. In East Hampton Village, the flags that are displayed are all illuminated, meaning they can fly at night.
The code also states that the flag should not be flown in inclement weather unless an all-weather flag is being displayed. Mr. Horn noted that while the flag would not be flown on a day with bad weather, it is not required to run out during a storm and take the flag down. He also said that many stick with the tradition of not putting the flag up on days of foul weather, regardless of the flag’s material.
When it comes to the whole country, state or local communities lowering their flag at half staff, Mr. Rickenbach said he believes that this tradition shows solidarity.
“The American flag in all its glory is a manifestation of what our country is all about,” the mayor said.
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