A benefit will be held this Saturday for Larry “The Flagman” Eckhardt of Little York at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Monmouth. After being diagnosed with thyroid cancer, members of the Little York and Kirkwood volunteer fire departments wanted to help Eckhardt through this tough time. Jeff Ballard gives details on the benefit:
“That will start about 4 o’clock. There will be a live auction that starts at 6:30, and of course, there’s a meal provided and a live DJ, 50/50 drawing, bake sale, koozies, that sort of thing,” he said.
Eckhardt earned his nickname by putting up nearly half a million flags across a 14-state area to honor veterans, fallen soldiers, police officers, and firefighters. The Flagman’s impact has spanned far and wide according to Ballard, with word of his benefit spreading across social media.
“We have people – and I think they’re into two blocks of rooms. I don’t know how many rooms are in a block; six or ten or whatever – but they had to reserve another block of rooms because they have people coming in from Iowa, Indiana, Ohio. They heard this through social media, and they wanted to be a part of it,” he said.
Admission will be a free will donation. To learn more, call Steve Melleny at 309-945-2674 or Jessica Taylor at 309-371-5051.
written by Jackson Kane
