Is your loved one serving in the military? In view of your family's service and sacrifices, we want to GIVE you a Blue Star Service Banner.
Please click the Blue Star Service Banner above:
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Service Banner History
The idea of a Blue Star Service Banner was inspired by Robert L. Queissner, a Spanish-American War Veteran and World War I Army Captain of the
5th Ohio Infantry, who created a banner to honor his two sons, who were serving on the front lines in World War I. The Service Banner
quickly gained popularity with others.
On Sept. 24, 1917, an Ohio congressman read the following into the Congressional Record: "The mayor of Cleveland, the Chamber of
Commerce and the governor of Ohio have adopted this Service Flag." "The world should know of those who give so much for liberty.
The dearest thing in all the world to a father and mother - their children."
The Gold Star Service Banner also traces its roots back to World War I. The idea of a Gold Star developed from The Women's Committee
of the Council of National Defense suggestion, which was approved by President Woodrow Wilson, that mothers who lost a child in the
war should wear a black mourning band, with a Gold Star, on their left arm.
After having served as President of the United States from 1901 to 1909, Theodore Roosevelt and his family displayed a Gold Star
Service Banner in honor of their youngest son, twenty year old Quentin, who on July 14th, 1918, while serving as a fighter pilot, was
shot down and killed behind enemy lines over France.
Quentin Roosevelt in his Nieuport 28 Fighter Plane in France
During WWI and WWII most banners were hand made and sewn by mothers across the nation. One of the most famous Gold Star Service
Banners was that of the five Sullivan brothers of Waterloo, Iowa, who all perished on the U.S.S. Juneau which was torpedoed while
operating in the vicinity of Guadalcanal in November of 1942, taking her captain and 550 crewmen down with her.
The Secretary of War approved the official Service Banner design in February 1943. Congress authorized the Service Banner on
October 17, 1943.
Did you see the movie "Saving Private Ryan" and do you remember the four star, Blue Star Service Banner hanging in Mrs. Ryan's
kitchen window facing the driveway?
A screen shot of Mrs. Ryan's banner
"Saving Private Ryan" was based on a real family. William and Margaret Ryan, the parents of James, Daniel, Peter and Sean Ryan,
displayed a Blue Star Service Banner with four stars at their Payton, coincidentally also, Iowa home in 1944.
Within the first five minutes of the newly released Clint Eastwood film, Flags Of Our Fathers, two Blue Star Service Banners are shown
flying in the windows of two different homes. One is flying in the window of the Texas home of the parents of USMC Corporal Harlon H.
Block. Early on the morning of February 19, 1945, Corporal Block along with four other Marines and a Navy hospital corpsman, raised the
Flag of our Country atop Mount Suribachi, on the small Japanese island of Iwo Jima.
More information here
Above is a Blue Star Memorial Highway Marker. Did you know there are over seventy thousand miles of highway across our nation that
are officially designated as, click here:
Blue Star Memorial Highways?
These 6 inch in diameter cast bronze grave markers go back to WWI, top left, and can be found in almost every cemetary throughout the
United States. We are confident that the stars on these markers are representative of the gold star.
The Service Banner was not popular during the Korean and Vietnam Wars. During Desert Storm some U.S. ships sent Service Banners to
the families of everyone aboard. Because Desert Storm was of such short duration, the Service Banner never really had the time to
catch on.
Please remember our troops and their families and try to do something,... anything... to honor their
service and sacrifice.
The National Remember Our Troops Campaign, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt nonprofit organization. Contributions received
from individuals, foundations, and corporations are tax-deductible to the extent allowable by law. Direct all comments or
questions regarding NROTC, Inc. to: info@nrotc.org
If you are looking for the other NROTC... The Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps...
ENTER FROM HERE (Our acronyms are coincidentally the same and we have no other affiliation with them)
The National Remember Our Troops Campaign
111 North Stuart Street Baltimore, Maryland, USA 21221 410-687-3568
Copyright(c) 2005, National Remember Our Troops Campaign, Inc. All rights reserved.
Has a loved one recently died while in service? It is our honor to GIVE you a Gold Star Service Banner to honor your fallen hero. We pledge to never forget.
Please click the Gold Star Service Banner above:
