Man walks 150 miles with American flag

Posted: Thursday, June 12, 2014 4:18 pm

Last Saturday, Crestview resident Wendell Beattie started walking with his American flag toward Tallahassee and arrived in Jackson County Thursday. He plans to take part in an official Flag Day ceremony in the state’s capital city at 11:30 a.m. EDT on Saturday, but will be there at 9 a.m. in case anyone shows up for an informal ceremony he had arranged prior to learning of the official event.

In walking the 150-mile distance with his flag, Beattie is trying to increase awareness of the “Operation American Spring” movement, which he said aims to build a grassroots demand that the federal government operate within the boundaries of power set for it in the U.S. Constitution.

Beattie said he and fellow supporters of the OAS movement feel that the federal government has overstepped its authority in a variety of ways over time.

He was at the May 16 OAS gathering in Washington, D.C., where he and others had expected in the neighborhood of 2 million people to participate. When only about 1,000 turned out, Beattie was surprised and disappointed. He said he’s hoping his walk with the flag will draw more attention to the movement and help it grow.

As he walked through Marianna, two men pulled over to talk to him. One, veteran Ted Jolly, stopped just to thank Beattie for making the effort to put the nation’s flag in the spotlight just ahead of Flag Day on Saturday.

Chattahoochee City Manager Lee Garner also pulled over. Indicating he was familiar with and supportive of the OAS movement, Garner offered Beattie a free place to stay in that city’s campground for as many nights as he wanted as he makes his way on eastward to the capital.

Beattie didn’t know if he’d get there in time to stay the night and still get to Tallahassee in time for the ceremony, but said he appreciated the offer.

“ Operation American Spring was templated after the Arab Spring that occurred about a year or two ago. What happened was that there were people in their countries fed up with the way the government was running things. People rose up and demanded a change. They got a change. They established a new government.” Beattie said though, that he and the OAS are not looking to do that. “Our Constitution is perfectly sound,” Beattie said. “We have a great country and we have a lot of great people. We just need the people who are in government to follow the Constitution.”

He spoke of being troubled by recent controversies involving cover-ups, scandal, the national debt and other matters.

On his trek to the capital, Beattie is carrying about 40 pounds of gear in a backpack, things like extra clothes, a sleeping bag and other on-the-road essentials. He sometimes camps out under the stars and sometimes sleeps in hotels, he said. The flag and flagpole he’s carrying together weigh about 10 pounds. Beattie said he considers it an honor to bear that weight in furtherance of a cause he believes in.

You need to be a member of The Patriots For America to add comments!

Join The Patriots For America

Email me when people reply –

Replies

  • Great AMERICAN.

  • It's refreshing to see there are people taking action to help Bolster the OAS movement on the Mall in D.C. Thank you Wendell Beattie. Your sacrifice is above and beyond. God's Speed !  Amen  Pastor Marc

  • Thank you and God bless you, Wendell.  All of us appreciate what you have done and how you have honored our precious flag.  It means so much.

  • God bless Mr. Beattie.

  • What a great story! I will pass this on.
    Wendell Beatty is doing a good thing- it is nice to see that someone in government, though the position is small (city manager) knows about and supports OAS. I hope Wendell is successful in his quest to draw more attention to OAS.

  • God Bless and protect this true Patriot

  • i saw where there arresting Vets that are talking on facebook against the crybaby BO, he doesn't approve of not being liked? anyway they had no grounds to detain him in jail he is suing them now so becareful we all will be next Amen need Ham radios

    • they have been doing that right along. They throw anyone active out if they say anything about the bum in OUR White House. I saw where a career army patriot was thrown out and lost his pension for going on facebook and just saying a true fact about him. Nothing demeaning just a true fact. Very scary. The military HATES him. He is a disgrace as a commander in chief. Never has the moral in the military been so low.

      Thank you Mr Beatty for being a true patriot that is willing to really do something along with the others who are out there in DC supporting OAS. I am an 80 yr old woman and could not get there as I have done in the past with the Tea Party. But I am there in spirit and I do email numerous Congress people on a daily basis. Not only my own but any that will take emails outside their district. SOme will not but many do.

    • My wife and I are now "official Hams".  It does not take long to read the book, and the practice web site is great in order to prepare one for the exam.  Go to QRZ.com    I do not believe that we will stand as a nation unless Obama and all those who support him are locked up, tried for treason, and sentenced.  We will have chaos here in our country, because so many of the "elite" as the Bible says have been fooled.  He is not who he claims to be other than he is definitely Muslim Jihadist and supports the Muslim Brotherhood and the Al Qaida.  Too much hard evidence is available and is being ingored.  Pray for our country and those who are standing ready to do the right thing for our country--including giving up their lives.

    • Could you please let us know where you read this? I am a Vet and do not trust bo or what is going on. This needs to be spread nation wide if true. I know he is a muslim and also not a real American by births as it is required by the constitution

This reply was deleted.