The flagpole on the patio on the south side of the Sally Manzara Interpretive Nature Center was installed as part of an Eagle Scout project by Matthew Bohlig. It is a place to fly the flag of the United States of America in honor of a person who has served in the Armed Forces of our Country, or as a First Responder protecting our people.  The honoree may be alive, or have passed away.

You are invited to use this facility free of charge. You may, if you wish, fly the flag provided by the Veterans Administration for a deceased veteran’s funeral ceremony. Or you may bring another US flag to fly. The person or group who is honoring someone may use our patio as a place to hold a ceremony in this person’s honor, but please observe appropriate precautions to minimize the spreading of coronavirus.  Please observe proper flag etiquette ( https://www.military.com/flag-day/flag-ettiquette-dos-and-donts.html) and remove any items you have brought when you leave that day.

We have a flagpole reservation system for those who wish to fly the US flag. Please send an email to info@sminc-lake-elmo.org requesting the specific day you wish to use the flagpole to fly the US Flag.  This email is monitored a few times a week, please allow a day or two for a response, and the name will be placed on the website calendar for 6:30 AM – Flagpole reserved all day.

The person or group who requests the reservation is also invited to use the display case on the exterior wall of the building to show information about the person being honored. A form is provided below, you may print it out and fill it in, or you may provide your own format. If you include the information about the person in the reservation email, we will post it on our website along with the date of the reservation.