It wasn’t until the Norfolk, Va. resident and his sister, Councilwoman Diane Krause, found an American flag in a hope chest in their parents’ house that he knew what he wanted to give. The flag was given to him while he was serving on the U.S.S. Saratoga in January 1991 during Operation Desert Storm. Following tradition, the flag was flown for a month and given to someone on the ship. When Chorlton returned home from war, he gave the flag to his parents and they flew it in their yard. After they passed away, the flag was found in the chest by the siblings.
“He didn’t want to give money. He wanted to do something special,” Krause said.
At Monday night’s council meeting, the flag which spent years tucked away in a chest and once flew on a battleship, was given to the memorial’s creator, Mayor Pro Tem Tom Witts.
Witts accepted the flag and said it will now fly near the memorial each Veterans Day and Memorial Day and will be displayed in City Hall.
