Group rallies to buy big new flag shredded in recent storm

Surrey Flag Society wants to replace banner on 104th Avenue

Photo of the Barnes Wheaton flag posted to Twitter by CKNW radio reporter Janet Brown (@JanetBrown980) following the windstorm on Aug. 29.

Photo of the Barnes Wheaton flag posted to Twitter by CKNW radio reporter Janet Brown (@JanetBrown980) following the windstorm on Aug. 29.

SURREY — They love the flag.

The giant Canadian flag that can be seen from all points in Guildford, that is.

A group of Surrey residents have formed the Surrey Flag Society after the city icon was destroyed by the windstorm on Aug. 29.

The 12-metre-by-24-metre Canadian flag has been flying 86 metres above a car dealership since 1987. The society is asking people “who wish to rally around this powerful and beloved symbol” to raise enough cash to buy Barnes Wheaton North Surrey a brand new flag “as a goodwill gesture and a big thank you for keeping ‘The Flag’ flying.”

The flag shredded by the storm had only been flying for two days, the society’s press release noted. It costs $25,000 each year to keep a flag flying on that lofty pole.

“It is the opinion of the Surrey Flag Society that we all benefit from this beautiful icon,” the press release states. “We would love to pay them back just once.”

At press time, they had a ways to go, as $50 had been donated toward the society’s $5,000 target at Gofundme.com/k53hh4tw.

tom.zytaruk@thenownewspaper.com

 

Surrey Now