CHESAPEAKE, Va. — George Lutz had a simple but sweeping vision when he created the Honor and Remember Flag.
"This symbol needs to be all over the country, at every state capitol... at every flagpole that exists," Lutz said.
That vision grew from grief. Lutz lost his son, Tony, on Dec. 29, 2005, when the 25-year-old was killed in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Tony Lutz never planned on joining the military, but the September 11 attacks opened his mind to military service.
"Tony was just leaving high school and getting ready for college, and it, it very much deeply affected him," Lutz said.
"It resonated in a way that made him wonder, ' What could I do, you know, what difference could I make, you know, how could I give back'," Lutz recalled.
By 2004, Tony had enlisted as a young husband and father.
"When he came to me, he said, ' Hey, Dad, you know, I joined the Army. ' The first thing I said to him was, ' Are you crazy?' " Lutz said.
"He said, I think I can make a difference. And, uh, I gave him a hug. I told him I loved him, told him to keep his head down," Lutz said.
After Tony's first deployment, the knock on the door came.
"I'm getting a knock on the door with two somber Army uniformed officers bringing me those five deadly words, ' We regret to inform you..." Lutz said.
In the aftermath of that loss, Lutz searched for purpose.
"I had to wrestle with that. I had to figure out, well, what am I gonna do next? Where am I gonna go? What, what can I do to make a difference?" Lutz said.
His answer was the Honor and Remember Flag, which he unveiled on Memorial Day in 2008. Since then, he has been on a cross-country mission to see it fly far and wide. Twenty-nine states now fly it, including Virginia. Lutz is also pushing for federal legislation that would allow the flag to fly over federal buildings.
"When these families see it, they know without question. My loved one is being remembered. And that's the power of a flag," Lutz said.
American Legion Post 280 in Chesapeake was the first to ever fly the flag, nearly two decades ago. Inside the post, the very first Honor and Remember Flag is on display, while a newer one flies outside today.
Tony Lutz is buried in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery. His father said standing among those graves shaped everything.
"I have felt the burden from every one of those graves of please don't let me be forgotten..." Lutz said.
That weight is what drives him.
"So what the honor and remember flag does is it brings a tangible opportunity to express appreciation where none existed before. And that's the least that anybody can do," Lutz said.
Lutz wrote a book chronicling his journey. You can learn more about it here, where you can also purchase a flag.
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