Flag rejection is shameful

To those unpatriotic committee members of the Bell Tower Park who voted not to display an American flag at the new Blanche and Julian Robertson Family Foundation park should pack their carpetbaggers sack and leave the city as they are trying to steal our ancestry sacrifices.

Salisbury should not begin to follow the rest of the crazies across the country. As if moving the Fame statue wasn’t enough, now our own loonies want Salisbury to become a disgraceful city and forget our glorious history set by patriots in the late 1700s and the building of the Bell Tower in 1892, repaired in 2016 with a $94,340 grant from the Department of Commerce.

Patriotism had a meaning back then as did freedom given to us by the American veterans.

Julian Robertson was a patriot and a veteran and would be ashamed that our once great family style city is on its way to becoming a squirrel heaven full of nuts.

If this style of bigotry and hatefulness is allowed in the city, you can always say, “I remember Salisbury as it used to be, not as it is now.”

It’s sad enough that South Main is full of emptied once thriving buildings where I shopped growing up and all the stores were occupied. Great memories of a once great city that our children and grandchildren will not ever see again unless we keep strong leadership in office to keep us from falling into the smelly pit of the far left and ungrateful who have no moral compass and live off government free cheese.

Patriotism is more than just a word. It’s death, blood and sacrifice all rolled up into what an individual does for his country and family. It’s from the millions of citizens and soldiers who died to keep us free and it is about the future where those elected are supposed to continue to protect us with adult decisions.

I can only hope there are enough on the city council to overturn the fruitcakes. I would hate to see them fall into their trap.

Salute the flag, honor the flag, respect the sacrifice to the flag or leave the country.

— Rodney Cress

Editor’s note: Cress is a combat veterans advocate.

Please support our flag

As a veteran and on behalf of many concerned citizens of Salisbury and Rowan County, we respectfully would like to go on record as strongly opposed to the recommendation of the Bell Tower Green, Inc. Board and those few members of the Bell Tower Green Advisory Committee who are in opposition to placing our American flag in our city-owned Bell Tower Green Park.

We strongly encourage the Salisbury City Council to vote to reject this recommendation and take immediate action to place our American flag in our park as soon as possible, and hopefully not later than Veterans Day, Nov. 11.

We also respectfully ask all citizens who support our flag and our country to join us in voicing your support of the motion to honor our country and flag in the Bell Tower Green Park.

May God be with us in this effort, and may God bless our flag and our country.

—  Ronnie Smith

Editor’s note: Smith is an Air Force veteran.

Nominate someone for Service Above Self Youth Award

I was nominated for the Service Above Self Youth Award in 2020. When I went on the stage at Keppel Auditorium at Catawba College to be congratulated by the schools superintendent I found out that everyone who is nominated for the Service Above Self Youth Award receives a beautiful framed certificate.

There are also several other awards. For example I was nominated for giving my time to help in child care and received an $8,000 scholarship for Catawba College. I am a senior at East Rowan High School and I plan on attending Catawba in 2023.

Anyone can nominate a child for the Service Above Self Youth Award so please take a few minutes and nominate a child from Rowan County between the ages of 5-18 years old for the Service Above Self Youth Award. You can find the nomination form by emailing Service Above Self Youth Award Nomination Form. Thank you to everyone that makes this happen.

— Morgan Duncan

Rockwell