This is the twenty-sixth patch made for the National 9/11 Flag restoration project. The National 9/11 Flag was brought to Lincoln, Nebraska on June 2, 2011 for a display and stitching ceremony at the Nebraska State Capitol Rotunda.
The Nebraska patch was made from a retired flag that flew on the side of the Woodman Of The World Tower in Omaha, Nebraska. In September 2006, in observance of the fifth anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 2001, Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society provided the citizens of Omaha and surrounding communities with a magnificent but respectful remembrance of the victims and heroes of 9/11.
At the center of the week long observance were two 50-foot by 100-foot U.S. flags, suspended from the east and west sides of Woodmen Tower, national headquarters of Woodmen of the World. Each of the flags’ 13 stripes was four feet in width, and each of the 50 stars was three feet tall. When hung vertically, the flags obscured seven floors of the Tower. At night they could be seen for miles, illuminated by the Tribute in Light, twin columns of light that pierced the night skies over Omaha. The display was inspired by the memorial that has illuminated the New York City skyline every year since the World Trade Center attacks. The Tribute in Light and the monumental flags were symbols of solidarity with the people of New York City that moved hearts and anchored emotions.
But high winds toward the end of the week long observance forced the early removal of the flags from Woodmen Tower. Though badly damaged, one of the flags was repairable. The other, however, was beyond repair, and was entrusted to the Boy Scouts of America for a retirement befitting the duty it has served in honoring the victims and the heroes of 9/11.
Part of one of the four foot white patches was donated by the Boy Scouts and Woodman of the World to be used for the official state patch for the 9/11 Flag The patch is 20 inches high by 8 inches long. It was sewn into an area on the fourth white stripe located approximately 2 foot from the right edge of the National 9/11 Flag between the Kansas and Wyoming patches (Location R8-2).
The patch (s) was sewn by 97 people during the ceremony.
The remains of the white stripe has been returned to Woodman and the Boy Scouts.
The Flag Team on site with the National 9/11 Flag consisted of Carolyn and Denny Deters and FDNY Firefighter Jimmy Gedris
