Illinois Flags To Fly at Half Staff in Honor of Arizona Sen. John McCain
United States and state of Illinois flags will fly at half-staff throughout Kane County in honor of Arizona Sen. John McCain, who died Aug. 25, 2018, at the age of 81.
Flags are to be flown at half-staff from today (Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2018) until sunset on the day of McCain’s interment at the U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis, MD.
CREDIT: johnmccain.com)
McCain had “served the United States of America faithfully for 60 years,” according to www.mccain.senate.gov website.
McCain was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona in 1982 and elected to the United States Senate in 1986. He was the Republican Party’s nominee for president in the 2008 election.
Over the course of his career, McCain served as chairman of the Senate Committees on Indian Affairs, Commerce, Science and Transportation, and most recently, Armed Services.
According to www.johnmccain.com, McCain graduated from the Naval Academy in 1958, and served as a Naval aviator for 22 years, including in North Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
His plane was shot down during bombing mission over North Vietnam, forcing him to eject, knocking him unconscious and breaking both his arms and his leg.
(CREDIT: johnmccain.com)
He was taken as a prisoner of war into the “Hanoi Hilton,” where he was denied needed medical treatment and subjected to years of torture by the North Vietnamese. He spent much of his time as a prisoner of war in solitary confinement.
His naval honors include the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart, and the Distinguished Flying Cross.
The Illinois Department of Central Management Services has received notice from the president of the United States of America that all persons or entities covered by the Illinois Flag Display Act are to fly the flags at half-staff from now until sunset on the day of internment.
Memorial services will be held at the Arizona state capitol on Aug. 29 and there will be an Arizona public procession on Aug. 30.
On Aug. 31, McCain will lie in state at the United States Capitol, where the senator’s family, colleagues, staff and the public will honor his life and service.
On Saturday, Sept. 1, he will be carried with ceremony from the U.S. Capitol by Armed Forces Body Bearers, secured and moved by motorcade to Washington National Cathedral. The motorcade will pause at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial where his wife, Cindy, will lay a ceremonial wreath honoring all whose lives were lost during the Vietnam War.
SOURCE: state of Illinois news release, www.mccain.senate.gov, www.johnmccain.com
