February Sparks American Patriotism

February is flag-waving time across the United States. Lincoln’s birthday is on the 12th and Washington’s on the 22nd, with both being celebrated Feb. 16 as a national holiday, known in some states as Presidents’ Day.

Aside from the Statue of Liberty celebrations last year, this may be the biggest celebration of the United States since the 1976 Bicentennial Year, because 1987 has been proclaimed National Year of Thanksgiving, tying in with a celebration of the 200th anniversary of the U.S. Constitution (which will peak nationwide in September).

He Had a Dream

Recognition of the Constitution’s bicentennial resulted from a dream of Brian Roquemore, a 40-year-old investment broker from Florida, who spent 18 months in Washington pushing for a resolution proclaiming 1987 as a National Year of Thanksgiving. It was approved by Congress and signed by President Reagan.

“It began with a wish,” Roquemore says. “I wished that every American could and would, for a full year, have an attitude of gratitude for our country.”

Since the proclamation was made, Bob Hope has been named chairman of the Committee for the Year of Thanksgiving, and plans are under way for citizens to participate in the celebration later this year by carrying a copy of the Constitution across the country, much as the Olympic Torch was carried to Los Angeles in 1984.

A Year of Thanksgiving office has been opened at 3708 Georgetown Station, Washington, D.C. 20007-0208.

In September, Emmy-winning TV producers Gary Smith and Dwight Hemion will produce eight hours of television from Philadelphia, saluting the bicentennial of the Constitution.

“There will be an advance show on Sept. 16,” Smith says, “a dramatic presentation of what went on in Philadelphia the summer of 1787. Then on Sept. 17, there will be a parade of states, and at 4 p.m., when the Constitution was reportedly signed, President Reagan will emerge from Independence Hall. The Liberty Bell will be rung as a signal for bells to chime across the United States and the free world.”

The producer hopes it will have the same emotional impact as lighting the torch for the Olympics or the centennial celebration of the Statue of Liberty.

With all of this scheduled later in the year, Americans can enter into the spirit of the year this month by displaying American flags. And, according to Ruben Gomez, sales manager of AAA Flag & Banner Manufacturing Co., Americans may have more flags to display than in the past.

“Since the 1984 Olympics, the sale of American flags by our company has increased by one-third,” Gomez reports.

Other Angelenos have their own way to express their patriotism on Washington’s birthday (or Presidents’ Day), and some of their ways may serve to inspire others.

George Izumi, owner of Grace’s Pastries (named after his wife), bakes cupcakes for several Los Angeles public schools, adding a likeness of Washington or Lincoln on a pick, or he tops the confections with an American flag or a cherry to represent Washington’s cutting down the cherry tree.

In 1950, Izumi was among the early Japanese Americans to open a bakery in the Los Angeles area. He has eight pastry shops in Los Angeles today and has received 36 Gold Cups for baking.

“America is still a land of opportunity,” says Izumi, who was born on Washington’s birthday; his parents named him after the first U.S. President.

American Impressionist Robert Jensen of Los Angeles is a direct descendant of Daniel Boone. He portrays his feelings for his country by the use of a “patriotic signature” on his large, mural-like paintings. You may have to be a detective to find it in his landscapes, but there’s always a miniature American flag somewhere.

Chocolate Invitations

While many Americans reveal their patriotism on July 4, Jacque Heebner of Jacque Designs, a party-planning firm in Beverly Hills, sometimes salutes the country with a party on Presidents’ Day weekend.

“I always select five couples of close friends and hand deliver an invitation of a miniature flag that’s made of white chocolate with the stars and stripes appropriately colored,” she says. The flag/invitations arrive in boxes decorated with red, white and blue streamers.

“Because America is a combination of cultures and nationalities, I like using ethnic recipes for the appetizers and entrees,” Heebner adds.