Inside the probate courtroom, centered between the Stars and Stripes and Alabama’s state flag, hangs an American Flag not made with a typical needle or thread, but with cuts of wood stained with by the hands of a combat veteran.
Normally the state’s or county’s seal is mounted just above the judge’s chair; however, when her colleagues presented her with the Flag of Valor after being sworn in as Marshall County’s first female judge of probate, Andrea LeCroy was nearly moved to tears. From that moment she knew where her new flag would be flying.
“Some have come in here and said, ‘Doesn’t a seal usually go up there?’” LeCroy said. “But I just love it so much and really love what it represents. It belongs up there.”
One of the many reasons why LeCroy holds the flag so dear is because of her late father, Rick Briggs, who served as a marine in the Vietnam War. Current and past military members have always held a special spot in her heart, and since a veteran made the ‘Flag of Valor’ it meant even more to her.
According to its website, Flags of Valor is a veteran owned, veteran operated, and veteran made company. Each purchase made from the company helps raise money for veteran and first-responder charities.
With the flag also came a small note about the person who made it, Christian. LeCroy was so impressed that she wrote a letter to the veteran, told him thank you for his service and shared where the flag he crafted would hang for years to come.
She said she loves to walk into the courtroom and see it as a constant reminder of her father and others who made the sacrifice to protect the U.S. and her freedoms.
“I always love telling its story,” she said. “ I think I’ve told it to everyone that has come in here.”
(1) comment
This flag brings tears to my eyes.
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