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Flag Stolen From Comfort Park Doesn’t Stop Celebration BY MICHAEL HAWKINS | EDITOR OF THE COMFORT NEWS
for thousands of Texans. Whether the flag is flying or not, visitors and residents will come to enjoy a day of fun, food, music and patriotic togetherness. IF YOU STOP AND LOOK AT THE U.S. FLAG FLYING IN COMFORT On this same note and speaking of “Comfort-style,” Solis had Park today, there’s a story behind the fact that it’s there. It’s more to offer about the flag in the Park. there because of actions taken by a number of people to put “On a brighter note,” she said, “Robert Chamberlain donated things back together after a crime. an outdoor floodlight so that the flag will be highlighted during At some point in the latter part of June a thief (or thieves) the night-time hours. We then needed a source of power and stole the U.S. flag that flew above Comfort Park, according to Steve Whitaker again offered to donate his time to make it Shirley Solis, executive director of the Greater Comfort Area happen. He set a base in the ground to secure the light and ran Chamber of Commerce, which shares responsibility for the Park the necessary underground wiring to complete the task.” with Kendall County. Whitaker is a master electrician and owner of United “Someone took the flag from the park,” she said in an email Electrical Services, A JSW Diversified Company, who has to The Comfort News. “They also cut the donated a great deal of time over the rope so we cannot easily replace [it]. We last two years to upgrade the electrical have obtained a replacement flag, will infrastructure in the Park. According to get the rope and then have to locate a Solis, he’s helped by rewiring the Gazebo, method/bucket truck to install. We hope installing security lights at the playground to have it in place by July 4th but cannot and upgrading the wiring to the outdoor guarantee.” pavilion and the barbecue area. Now this. On July 1, Solis told me that BEC had And while I was at the Park shooting volunteered to help hang the new flag. photographs of the linemen putting the Sure enough, at about 3:15 p.m., Kurt flag back in place, Whitaker showed up. Solis, BEC Board Director, showed up He had come to run new electrical line and with a new rope and flag and the BEC conduit across the rear wall of the pavilion linemen weren’t far behind. In short in order to make it safe. It was obviously in order, John Williams, one of the lineman, need of repair because one of the outlets was in a bucket headed for the top of was hanging by its wires having come the pole to thread the new rope while unattached from the conduit then in place. his partner Austin Allen waited below to Margaret Stone, Chamber board help pull the line down, tie it to the new president, was there unpacking hundreds flag and hoist it back in place. of Comfort Independence Day 2019 The irony of the U.S. flag being stolen T-shirts provided by Whitaker for the event just prior to July 4 is, I’m sure, not volunteers. BEC L INEMAN AU ST I N ALLEN RAI SES A NEW U.S. FLAG lost on you. Who knows what the thief Other volunteers were there setting up P HOTO BY MI CHAEL HAW KI NS intended. Perhaps it was as simple as the silent auction in the pavilion. theft and vandalism for profit, perhaps it was a prank taken too The message I like to take away from all of this is that far, perhaps it was someone who really wanted a flag and saw despite the acts of malice and stupidity by some, the acts of an easy way to have one, perhaps it was someone trying to kindness and generosity by Chamberlain, Whitaker, Williams, make a statement about their discontent with—something. As is Allen, all of the volunteers and the many others who commit often the case where human actions are concerned, at a certain them every day are the ones that count. Those are the actions point the “why” really doesn’t matter. What matters is how about which it’s worth asking “why?” and more importantly those affected by the actions deal with the impacts. reflecting upon how we can promote more like them in our So it’s important to note that as disturbing as this action is, families, our town, our state, our country and our world. Oh, and one thing it didn’t impact was Comfort’s July 4 celebration, of course, in ourselves. Let’s start there. much of which took place in Comfort Park. People from all So that’s my challenge to myself and to each of you, let’s over Texas joined to celebrate our nation’s Independence do what we can, where we are, with what we’ve got to make Day, “Comfort-style.” For years it has been one of the town’s our little corners of the world safer, happier, kinder and more defining events and the preferred place to celebrate the holiday welcoming to others.
Story originally featured in The Comfort News
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