Charlie Faistl remembers attending the North Hudson Flag Day Parade when he was a youngster growing up in Weehawken.
“When I was kid, growing up during World War II, it was a big event,” said Faistl, a long-time North Bergen resident who has been the finance officer for the Flag Day Parade for the last 26 years and has been the main coordinator for the past 15 years. “Back then, the American flag meant something. Everyone would fly the flag with a sense of pride and patriotism. It’s sad that some people tend to forget the importance of the flag.”
However, Faistl and his committee work diligently to preserve the honor of the day and the parade – and of course, Old Glory herself.
“There still are a lot of people who look forward to the parade each year,” Faistl said. “It’s a reminder of their patriotism.”
With that, the 61st annual Flag Day Parade will kick off Thursday night, June 14 (which is of course, Flag Day nationwide), beginning at 7:15 p.m. at the intersection of 85th Street and Bergenline Avenue in North Bergen. The parade will continue on along Bergenline Avenue, through North Bergen and Guttenberg, until 57th Street in West New York, where it will commence with a ceremony at Miller Stadium.
At the ceremony, more than 1,000 old torn and tattered American flags will be disposed of in the most proper manner, which will be a flag burning celebration. The ceremonies at the stadium should begin approximately at 8:30 p.m.
Organizing the parade and the festivities is a lot of work and has to be considered a labor of love for Faistl, who served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and has been a member of the American Legion for 44 years. “I think this is the only Flag Day Parade around, but we’ve been able to assemble once again a pretty good sized parade,” said Faistl, who has enlisted the services of at least 10 bands that will perform along the parade route, including the marching bands of North Bergen, Memorial and Weehawken High Schools.
Some of the other bands that will be part of the parade include the Jack O’Brian Marching Band from Hoboken, the Leathernecks pipe band, the Palisades Park Fire Department Marching Band, the Quest Drum and Bugle Corps, the Field Music of the Salaam Temple and the Little Ferry Veterans of Foreign War Band.
There will also be floats throughout the procession. It is a way for the three participating towns, namely North Bergen, Guttenberg and West New York, to truly honor the symbol of American freedom and democracy. Faistl said that the ceremony at Miller Stadium is a very moving and solemn moment.
“Throughout the course of the year, we collect as many old flags as we can find,” Faistl said. “The flags are then placed in a dumpster and burned together, under the guard of the North Hudson Regional Fire Department. That is the only proper way to dispose of old flags.”
Faistl said that the parade committee, which includes retired Guttenberg police officer Vic Conversano and North Bergen Recreation Coordinator John “Digger” O’Dell, begins organizational meetings in January to insure a top-flight event come June 14.
“It takes a while to get a parade like this going,” Faistl said. “We all want to make sure we get it done right.” It’s safe to say that Faistl and his committee give their all to organize a one-of-its-kind tribute to the Stars and Stripes that may last forever.