In a heartwarming display of community solidarity, local patriotic organizations have raised over $2,000 to replace American flags taken from the Niceville Exchange Club’s Memorial Day Field of Valor display.

• The fundraising effort was announced during Okaloosa County’s Women Veterans Day ceremony on June 12, just 10 days after the Exchange Club reported that 101 flags worth over $2,000 had been removed from their display at the Air Force Armament Museum.

The incident occurred during Memorial Week when the Exchange Club’s annual Field of Valor display was honoring fallen service members. The display, which features more than 380 flags recognizing Florida men and women who lost their lives in Iraq or Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001, had been moved to the Air Force Armament Museum to provide a more meaningful and accessible venue for the public.

According to the museum’s Facebook post, confusion arose when a sign reading “Take a flag” remained posted after the Exchange Club ran out of small hand-held flags they were giving away. Some visitors mistakenly believed they could take the large 3-by-5-foot memorial flags, with some even cutting flags from their poles.

• The missing flags included service flags honoring members of the 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) killed since Aug. 30, 2021, and those displayed in front of a sign listing Florida service members who have died since Sept. 11, 2001.

Community Response

The incident sparked immediate action from local patriotic organizations. Sofia Negron, president of the Snowden-Horne Society chapter of the Children of the American Revolution (CAR), announced during the Women Veterans Day ceremony that her organization had initiated a fundraising campaign.

“It recently came to the attention of the Snowden-Horne chapter of the CAR that a local fellow patriot honoring organization, the Niceville Exchange Club, experienced the loss of a great number of flags used for the Field of Valor,” Negron said. “We felt this was an opportunity to come together with the other children of the American Revolution in support of this display.”

The fundraising effort quickly expanded beyond the CAR to include multiple lineage societies:

• Daughters of the American Revolution
• Daughters of American Colonists
• Sons of the American Revolution
• Other Children of the American Revolution chapters

The Presentation

During the Women Veterans Day ceremony, the groups presented their first donation of $1,500 to David Lambert, President of the Emerald Coast Exchange Club. Additional contributions from the participating organizations brought the total to well over $2,000 – more than enough to replace all the missing flags.

“This community gets it done again,” said Okaloosa County Commissioner Carolyn Ketchel, who helped facilitate the ceremony where the donation was presented.

Lambert, a lifelong resident of the community, expressed heartfelt gratitude for the support. He explained that the Emerald Coast Exchange Club and Niceville Exchange Club work together on the displays, and that they typically need to replace about one-third of their flags annually due to weather wear.

• “This money is well appreciated. We will replace those flags,” Lambert said, noting that the Field of Valor display will return for Veterans Day week in November. “When you go by and see those flags, honk the horn” – a reminder that the display serves as a visible tribute to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

About the Field of Valor

The Exchange Club’s Field of Valor has been a community tradition for nearly a decade. What began as a post-9/11 initiative to honor the fallen has grown into a major Memorial Day event that involves the entire community.

Each flag in the display includes a tag with photos and information about the fallen service member, including their branch of service, hometown, and sponsor. The event previously took place at the Mullet Festival Fairgrounds before moving to the more prominent location at the Air Force Armament Museum.

A portion of proceeds from the event benefits the Home for Heroes, which supports disabled military members in the local community by providing them homes.

The Exchange Club plans to reinstall the Field of Valor display for Veterans Day week in November, with the new flags purchased through the community fundraising effort. The organization continues to ask anyone who mistakenly took a large flag to return it to the Air Force Armament Museum.