And no, I don't mean Betsy Ross -- I mean the current 50-star banner that waves over our country and around the world.

I sure didn't -- until I came across this article today. The designer's name is Robert G. Heft, and the story of how he came to design the flag is sort of amusing to this teacher.

As a junior at Ohio's Lancaster High School in 1958, Heft needed a project for his American history class.

He found his calling when he came across the story of Betsy Ross, creator of the country's original flag. Armed with an idea, Heft took his family's 48-star flag and removed the blue portion of the banner.

It took him nine hours to cut out the 100 fabric stars needed to cover each side of the flag's top corner, he said. Heft went the 50-star route because of speculation that Alaska and Hawaii would become states.

Heft asked his grandmother to sew the blue section onto the flag, but she refused after realizing he'd dismantled the family's banner.

"She didn't want anything to do with it," Heft recalled.

Out of options, Heft took matters into his own hands, sewing his version of "Old Glory."

After working on the flag for 12 1/2 hours, Heft said he expected his grade to match his effort, but his teacher gave him a B-minus. Normally a quiet student, Heft said he had to confront the teacher.

"I approached him (thinking), 'Are you kidding me?' " Heft said.

After the discussion, the teacher told Heft that if he got the flag accepted nationally, he would give him an A.

Heft then sent the flag to a state representative and in 1960, his design became the country's official symbol. His teacher promptly bumped up his grade.

That sort of goes to show that a teacher never know what influence his or her words will have on a student -- and that it is important to be prepared to follow through on promises you make to students.

Heft still owns that original flag -- and speaks about his experience and patriotism to over 200 groups a year. He is working on a book about the flag and his experiences over the year.

Oh, and this July his design becomes the longest-serving flag in American history.

Not bad for a high school history project.

Posted by: Greg at 04:07 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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