COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL)- September 11, 2001 made an indelible mark on the students of Blanchard Elementary in Columbus. The school's unique approach to dealing with the national tragedy is still on display today at Columbus State University.
That's where Rhonda Kees and Mona Griffin went earlier this week to reminisce. Rhonda taught second grade at Blanchard and Mona was her student teacher back in the fall of 2001. They met at the CSU Lumpkin Center to reflect on the grand old flag that's draped on the wall. It's not your typical American flag. This one was delicately and creatively crafted by over 650 students who were attending Blanchard on 9/11. The flag was inspired by the horrific events of that day.
Rhonda remembers that fateful morning. "I was in the hall and I walked down toward the office. There was a commotion. They had a small television that was muted. It was on the twin towers. And I stood looking through that window and I thought they were showing a movie. People were so upset and other people were just silent. I turned and went in and they said it's horrible, it's horrible!"
Rhonda knew she had to tell Mona. Her husband and daughter were both in Washington, D.C. where a hijacked plane would hit the Pentagon. Mona's husband, Dennis, was okay. But she was worried about her daughter Reagan who worked for the Department of Justice in that area.
Mona said, "Reagan was in her car and she was sitting on the west side of the parking lot at the Pentagon at a stop light. She knew that the twin towers had been hit. She said she thought a bomb went off because she did not see the plane coming." Reagan made it home safely that night, but spent a long time in traffic.
The challenge for Rhonda and Mona was figuring out how to help their students process what had just happened to America. The answer came from a Blanchard parent, Michelle Boyd Hughes. Her son Handley was in the first grade and was sad seeing the images from the terror attacks on TV. Michelle said he was watching when firefighters unfurled a huge American flag on the side of the Pentagon the day after the attacks. Michelle said that really made an impression on him.
Michelle recalls having a dream in which she envisioned bolts of material flowing with kids all around. That dream translated into a mission...let the Blanchard students express their feelings through art. With permission from the principal, Michelle distributed squares of red and white cloth to each classroom. Each student was encouraged to draw an image of their choosing on their square with whatever words they felt like writing.
Rhonda liked that idea. She said, "It's healing for children to draw and express themselves, and that's the way we were trying to heal."
Michelle said, "I wanted them to take what was in their heart and put it on that material." The finished product was a 24x36 foot American flag. They asked dignitaries to sign the white stars on the flag. One of them includes the signature of former President George W. Bush.
The Blanchard flag was taken to an elementary school in New York City, the school closest to ground zero. It was temporarily displayed on the wall of the school building that faces the direction of where the twin towers once stood. A delegation from Blanchard accompanied the flag for that special ceremony that was held on the Valentine's Day after 9/11.
Then on Flag Day 2002, around 100 students, teachers, and faculty from Blanchard flew to Washington, D.C. to watch their flag unfurled on the wall of the Pentagon. Their heartfelt efforts were recognized during a military ceremony in their honor.
The Blanchard flag is on permanent display at the Columbus State University Lumpkin Center where it has been since 2003.
In looking back on how the Blanchard flag came about, Michelle says, "God just took it and used it. It's like a giant card or a giant hug for everybody."
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