Thousands of American flags placed throughout St. Francis to celebrate 4th of July

St. FRANCIS -- Fireworks for the Fourth of July are just days away but a community in St. Francis is doing something a little different to commemorate the holiday.

One by one, lawns in St. Francis are being adorned with the American flag. Stars and stripes wave in the subtle breeze as volunteers took on the stifling heat.

"A few troopers," Greg Schlecht said.

Greg Schlecht

Schlecht helped coordinate the patriotic gesture.

"It's one of the ways I give back to the community," Schlecht said.

As the owner of Greg’s True Value, he's about more than just hardware. As he shares what he truly values about the Fourth of July.

"We have to realize what a great country we live in," Schlecht said. "I'm very proud of our military and what they've done for us in the past."

So for the past 16 years, he sponsors the effort to place more than 3,000 flags outside of homes.

"We have them as keepsakes," Jennifer Schneider said.

Residents like Schneider look forward to the annual tradition.

"I think its wonderful they do it every year. I have been here for probably 12 years so I have 12 flags," Schneider said. "So in the next couple of days we will come out here and put all of our flags out."

A visual reminder as we prepare to celebrate our nation's independence.

"It means coming together as one -- the United States," Schneider said.

"You can't take it for granted our freedom and the history of the U.S. and what's it's done and it's a great place to live," Schlecht said. "You got to be proud of that and support it."