Document text
0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW October days break heat records in Medford ... Another wolf makes its way into Southern Oregon ... Our View: Let Medford voters decide on marijuana sales ... October days break heat records in Medford ... Another wolf makes its way into Southern Oregon ... Our View: Let Medford voters decide on marijuana sales ... POLITICS Central Point vet ensures Oregon will fly the POW/MIA flag Comment By Damian Mann Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 1, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 1, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News A door gunner on a helicopter during the Vietnam War, Hugh Crawford likes to say he had only his knee caps and an M-16 protecting him from a stray bullet. The 70-year-old Central Point veteran remembers he wasn’t worried as much about the enemy taking his life while sitting in his precarious perch in the open door of the helicopter. “The biggest fear most of us had was to become a POW,” he said. “It was a terrifying thought.” Crawford has been on a campaign to remember POWs but also to remember those missing in action, who total 83,342 since World War II. Salem legislators and Gov. Kate Brown have agreed, and they've signed off on House Bill 2892, which will require government buildings across the state to fly the black MIA/POW flag along with Old Glory and the Oregon flag. Sponsored by Rep. Sal Esquivel, R-Medford, the bill would require that only of buildings that have the right infrastructure in place to display the flag. If a school or city building is being built or remodeled, it would be required to install sufficient flag poles to handle the additional flag. Currently, government buildings are required to raise the POW/MIA flag on six holidays every year. “But hardly anybody’s complying with it,” said Esquivel, who is a Vietnam vet. The cost to buy a POW/MIA flag should be about $65, based on the cost of an Oregon flag, Esquivel said. Sometime in the next month, the governor is expected hold a ceremony using the POW/MIA flag that Crawford has carried across the U.S. It will be raised at the Capital building to commemorate the House bill becoming law. In 1990, Congress passed Public Law 101-355 that recognized the flag as symbolizing all prisoners of war and missing in action from all wars. The flag originated in 1970 when Mary Hoff, a member of the National League of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia, wanted a symbol for U.S. military personnel who were prisoners or missing in action. The flag was designed by Newton Heisley, a former World War II pilot who later worked for a flag-making company. Crawford got the idea in 2013 when he traveled on motorcycle from Los Angeles to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. as part of the Run for the Wall event. In West Virginia, he saw the POW/MIA flag flying at the Capitol. Someone told him the flag was flown year round. “Everywhere I went I saw the POW/MIA sign,” he said. “I thought to myself, ‘Oregon can do this.’” Crawford picked up two POW/MIA flags and traveled back across the country with them. When he got home, he realized that most government institutions weren’t flying the flag even though it's required six times a year, including on POW/MIA Recognition Day, which is the third Friday of September. Crawford contacted Esquivel and he received endorsements from 57,645 veterans who supported flying the flag year-round in Oregon. “Without the support of these other veterans, this would have never happened,” Crawford said. Crawford flies one of the POW/MIA flags outside his Central Point home and has another one in a package, awaiting the ceremony at the state Capitol in Salem where it will be unfurled. Crawford expects many other veterans will join him at the Capitol to help raise the flag. Soon, similar flags will be flown across the state. “We need to never forget them,” said Esquivel. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476 or [email protected] . Follow on Twitter at @reporterdm . By Damian Mann Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 1, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501