Sonor Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 (edited) So yesterday was Father’s Day and I have a little saga worth telling while also praising a company. While serving in WWII, my father had a close friend Kos (as he called him). In the 1990’s my dad decided to visit him, one of the benefits of the internet. Well he knew that Kos started a flag company and sure enough, there it was on line, www.koscoflags.com. He contacted him and they got together with their families (dad with his wife and the Koskinen family). It was about this time that my wife and I purchased our first house and dad got an American flag for us from his friend. A truly wonderful gift especially coupled with the stories dad told. Ten years after my dad passed and another house for my wife and I, I noticed that the flag was getting faded and old looking. So, a couple of months ago I made the statement to my wife that we needed to replace it but I wanted to see if Kos’ company still existed. Well as life is very full of “duties” these days, it just kept getting pushed to the back burner and I never looked them up, but my wife did. She looked over the products and was confused about what to purchase and wrote to the company saying, “My father-in-law years ago gave us a flag from your company because he and Mr. Koskinen were in WWII together etc…” She received a note back saying the gentlemen was the grandson of Kos and had the privilege of meeting my father a couple of times. He read between the lines by seeing my wife’s last name and knew right away it was my father. He also had heard the stories and helped my wife with the flag (which is still made in America). Well needless to say, my Father’s Day gift still has me welling up with pride and choking up when I think about it. I must one day get to meet the grandson; this was a truly wonderful gift. Edited June 19, 2017 by Sonor Link to comment
szurszewski Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 That's a great Father's Day. Link to comment
Glenn Reed Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 Getting a little misty eyed myself. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment
Shiny Side Up Posted June 19, 2017 Share Posted June 19, 2017 That's a great story. Your wife is indeed a special and thoughtful lady. Link to comment
Chris K Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Great story! Thanks for sharing. Link to comment
Jake Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 And I thought my Home Depot Man Card that I got for Father's Day was cool. It is, but you win. I did just order one of those Annin Signature Series 3X5 flags from Kosco, however. Been wanting to order a flag for a while now and this is a perfect nudge to do so. Will fly it proudly in memory of those who serve and those who love them. Link to comment
Endobob Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 Great gift and story behind it - thanks for sharing! My Dad served in WWII and is still with us at 97. He taught me to love the Flag and stressed to me that many men and women have sacrificed there lives so that we can fly it proudly. Link to comment
mrzoom Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 I fly the flag everyday and only get 6 to 8 months before the need for replacement. The next flag will come from Kosco. Link to comment
lkraus Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 In daily use, I've found the Annin flags last about three years before fading requires replacement. The fabric and stitching is still in good condition at that point. Previous nylon flags only cost about half as much, but would be frayed and torn within 5-6 months. Link to comment
Sonor Posted June 22, 2017 Author Share Posted June 22, 2017 Guys - thanks for supporting them and mostly for appreciating my Dad's ongoing story. Link to comment
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