Americans United Flag Across America: Oklahoma Diary: Anthony G Davis

Oklahoma Home Oklahoma Diary: Anthony G Davis

(Anthony sent this e-mail to those who sponsored his participation with donation pledges)

31 October 2001

Dear Sponsors,

Thank you for your support and contributions to the Americans United Flag Across America flag run. I returned home last night from a very satisfying day of running with the flag, contributing your donations and supporting this effort.

I drove up to Oklahoma City on Monday evening, arriving just as the flag was leaving the Federal Building Memorial site. They had just had a very nice ceremony there, and it gave me chills to first see the flag, the support vehicles, police car and motorcycle escorts and the runners as they headed out of the city. I stayed the night there and arose early Tuesday morning (0345!! zzzz) so as to meet up with the flag again at 0530 as it reached a small town called Binger, Oklahoma. There I met the state coordinators and assisted them by driving the runner-support RV, shuttling runners back to their cars, helping with safety and morale when others were running, and running with the flag myself. It was a very rewarding experience to be able to see the many folks, most waving flags and adorned in their own red, white, and blue attire that had come out and waited along the sides of the road to take pictures and to salute the flag as it came past. Believe me, this felt like America's heartland. Especially touching to me was being able to stop just long enough to allow young children along the route to hold the American flag while their parents took pictures of them.

At 1 p.m. we arrived at Cordell, a county seat town that is nearly bankrupt now because of a damaging tornado that passed through earlier this month. The destruction was heartbreaking. The spirit of the people from Cordell was not broken, though, and the entire town stopped what they were doing, took their kids out of school, and lined the streets just to see the flag make its way through their town.

I continued about two and a half hours past Cordell, to Dill City, before peeling off to come home. I was able to run a total of 9 miles (8 miles initially, then one more later) only because of the pressure you all put on me! Even though I portrayed this as a "per mile" sponsorship, I was proud to donate over $250 and won't send my collectors out for any more. However, if you'd like to buy a T-shirt, if you know someone else who may like to contribute, or if you'd like to follow the flag's progress, please check out the website at: www.flagrun2001.org .

God bless you, thanks again, and God bless America.

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