International Paper honors 9/11 Bucksport millworkers express respect with flag hung outside building

BUCKSPORT – The events of Sept. 11 did not end when the last steel beam was carried off the site of the World Trade Center in New York City.

On Friday, workers at the International Paper Co. mill unfurled a red, white and blue reminder that the impact of that terrorist attack continues today. In a brief Flag Day ceremony outside the mill, they unveiled a 20-by-38-foot American flag that will hang permanently on the side of the mill’s wood processing building.

The idea for the flag came from millworkers.

“We wanted to honor what has gone on since September 11,” said Aaron Churchill, who works in the wood processing department at the mill. “It was just our part.”

Since Sept. 11, they were looking for a way to feel more patriotic, added co-worker Richard Whitney.

“There’s a large contingent of veterans in the department and a lot of firefighters,” Whitney said. “A lot of people wanted to do something to recognize the great loss NYFD had suffered. Within a fire department, one death is too many – 350 is unimaginable.”

The millworkers also wanted to do something to honor the men and women who are on active duty now, fighting the fight that began after Sept. 11. Many of the crew members at the mill have sons or daughters in the service, and Whitney himself said his daughter is on active duty in Turkey with the U.S. Air Force.

“We need to remember that this is still going on today,” he said. “It didn’t end. The events of 9-11 are still going on over there, and we need to remember those who are active in that process.”

Discussions about “doing something” began last fall shortly after the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington. One co-worker was a painter, Churchill said, and initially the employees discussed the possibility of painting a mural on the side of the building, the first large mill building along Route 15 coming into town from the north.

Concerned that a painting might fade, they turned their thoughts to a flag. Thinking they might raise funds to purchase it, Churchill said, workers approached mill manager Fred Oettinger about the project. He said the mill would buy the flag, but placed two conditions on the purchase.

“I told them it had to be big, and that we had to follow proper flag etiquette,” Oettinger said.

The mill crew found an in-state flag manufacturer, Allen Flag Co. of Cape Elizabeth, that could provide them with a large, all-weather flag, but because of the demand for flags after Sept. 11, it was several months before the flag was ready.

The flag was unveiled Friday as area resident Linda Handzel sang ‘My Country ‘Tis of Thee” and “God Bless America.” Several guests spoke during the ceremony, including Richard Bowden, a mill employee who also is the post commander at American Legion Post 93 in town.

Bowden said the presence of the flag held special meaning for veterans and for the town itself.

“This represents the strength and courage of this great country, and we dedicate it to those who have made the supreme sacrifice,” he said. “This is a sign of the strength and pride in this town.”

The flag is held by a large wooden frame and is securely attached to the building. Mill employees also ran the wiring outside the building so that the flag will be lighted at night.