SANTA ANA : County’s Flag Is in Good Hands

The Civic Center Plaza in Santa Ana, normally a hubbub of activity, has not yet come to life when Morris Elmore begins his day.

It’s often still dark outside and there are usually hundreds of the city’s homeless sleeping on the ground as Elmore, 49, raises the American flag outside the county’s Hall of Administration building. It’s a job he’s had for more than 19 years and one, he says, he takes great pride in.

The current national debate over flag burning strikes a nerve with Elmore, a Santa Ana resident who lives with his wife and two daughters and served in Vietnam in 1967-68.

“I don’t think they should allow flag burning, period,” Elmore said. “I think it’s just crazy and can’t see any reason why anybody would want to burn a flag. Some people want to break the rules no matter what they are.”

Elmore, a lead custodian for the county, said he wishes people would show more respect for Old Glory. To him, an offense that’s almost as bad as burning a flag is stealing one--something that happened quite often when the flag was still raised at the Old Courthouse, a historical building on Broadway.

“Once they moved the flag to the Hall of Administration, we didn’t have that problem anymore because there are so many people around the area,” Elmore said. “It would be really tough to steal a flag now.”

Elmore currently shares flag-raising duties with two other custodians. The crew tries to have the flag up by 7 a.m. each day. Usually, Elmore personally raises the banner first thing when he reports in at 6 a.m. But, at times, there are unavoidable delays.

“Well, we had a flood in the courthouse one morning and had to get rid of all the water before we could hang the flag,” he said. “The flag is very important but we have our priorities sometimes. We couldn’t leave water on the ground and be responsible for somebody slipping and falling.”

Although postal workers carry on through rain, sleet or snow, the American flag does not.

“The minute it starts to rain, we go out and take the flag down right away,” Elmore said. Elmore said flags last an average of six months before they need to be replaced. There are also days when Elmore must make a second trip out to the flagpole to adjust the flag to half-staff.

Evening crews normally take town the county flag around 5 p.m.

“I’m patriotic, I think, more than most people,” Elmore said. “After being in the war, it’s a special feeling to raise that flag.”