I believe there are only two problems that remain with our flag service… one will take a little longer to work through but the other was taken care of yesterday! There has been a developing issue over the months with trying to find the sleeve insert as the grass has grown over. I didn’t realize how much of a problem it was until I found myself down on hands and knees combing through several lawns looking for it!! If it wasn’t for a boy scout standing next to me with an armful of flags, I wonder what people may have thought I was doing in their front yard.
Anyway, the solution was to make some kind of marking where the boys (and leader) can easily find each sleeve. Since I wanted this marking to be clearly identified with our flag service, I chose a simple scout emblem. I made a stencil of it, bought some inverted marking paint and went to town throughout the neighborhood while the flags were still up. That way, I figured I wouldn’t miss any and also wouldn’t have to explain myself if I was painting marks at any other time.
Another problem down, one more to go (I hope).
See also:
Flag Service Problems and Solutions, part 1
Flag Service Problems and Solutions, part 2
Simplifying our Boy Scout Flag Service
Hello! Thank you for some really enlightening and helpful ideas about this fundraiser. I am wondering how you made a stencil? What did you use to do that? Did people mind that you were marking their yards/sidewalks/etc.? Did you have to get city approval? And what was the other issue that would be resolved with time? We’re trying to get this fundraiser going in our area and really appreciate your insights!
I’m glad you found this info helpful! To answer your questions: I found a simple version of the fleur-de-lis on the web, printed it on card stock, cut it out, traced it onto a sour cream lid, cut that with an X-acto knife and then taped it to a piece of cardboard. No one has ever complained about this marking on their curb but I also don’t expect them too since it’s pretty inconspicuous. I also did not ask for approval from the city either for the same reason. The other issue I mention that has resolved itself over time can be found in the comments of this post.