Photo By Lance Cpl. Kelvin Clark | Fathers of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron-312 pose with the handprint flag their...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS AIR STATION BEAUFORT, S.C. -- During a deployment, service members miss out on many occasions like holidays, graduations and birthdays. Whether it is a chance to celebrate a spouse’s anniversary or family reunion, service members do not have the same time with their loved ones as if they were back home. The families of Marines with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 312, also known as the Checkerboards, understand what they go through and have found a way to let their Marine know they are still on their minds.
The Checkerboard family members designed and carefully created a handprint flag for some of the fathers with VMFA-312. The flag was sent to the deployed squadron as a Father’s Day present.
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 312 departed from the Air Station, May 20, for a seven-month deployment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and New Dawn.
The handprint flag, which is laid out in the same pattern and color as the American flag, was done as an event for the Checkerboard spouses and families aboard the Air Station to come together for their deployed Marine.
“We had almost 70 spouses, parents and children come out to this event. Most of us were covered in paint by the end of the day, but we had a blast making it,” said DaNeil Cox, the family readiness officer for VMFA-312. “When [a Marine’s wife] suggested the flag at one of our meetings, we thought it would be something different, and it was large enough that we could include a lot of people. We thought the Marines would enjoy seeing their family member's handprints and messages.”
For the Marines, the flag was sent as a surprise on Father’s Day.
“None of us expected to receive the flag, and to get it on Father’s Day, made it more phenomenal than we had ever expected,” said Gunnery Sgt. Kevin Justice, the logistics chief for VMFA-312. “It was the greatest gift I have ever received. This is the second consecutive Father’s Day I missed from my children. The flag got here at the right time.”
To some of the Marines, the flag serves as a morale booster within the squadron.
The idea for the handprint flag was an attempt for the families to maintain contact with the squadron during its time away from Fightertown.
“We thought it would be a great way to send something special to the whole unit,” Cox said. “We are trying to do a fun event each month for the spouses and incorporate a project each time so that we can send something out to the ship.”
As a response to the flag, the 25 Marine fathers whose families were a part of the flag got together for a photograph in front of the handprint flag, July 9. The Marines took a photo in the squadron’s ready room and in front of aircraft 200, the jet with the squadron’s colors.
The flag currently hangs in the squadron’s ready room as a reminder of the families love and their continuous support for their Marines during the deployment.
| Date Taken: | 07.09.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 07.19.2010 08:45 |
| Story ID: | 53050 |
| Location: | MARINE CORPS AIR STATION BEAUFORT, SC, US |
| Web Views: | 114 |
| Downloads: | 84 |
This work, Checkerboard fathers show appreciation, by LCpl Kelvin Clark, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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