Retired Army Sergeant From North Platte Sends Flag Across the Globe

A retired U.S. Army sergeant living in North Platte is sharing a special American flag to honor fallen servicemen and women across the globe.

Chris Heisler is the president and founder of The Honor Network, an organization that sends the distinguished U.S. Honor Flag across the globe for ceremonies of fallen police, fire and military servicemen and women. As part of a collaborative network of states and countries, the flag has traveled more than any other U.S. flag, reaching most states, international military bases and even outer space. This weekend, the flag will travel to Tampa, Florida to honor the passing of a 32-year highway patrol veteran.

Heisler said he was gifted the flag by the Texas House of Representatives after the September 11^th terrorist attacks for his relief efforts. After traveling from Nebraska to Ground Zero with the flag, he said the symbol of the traveling flag became far greater than he imagined.

“We didn’t plan the Honor Flag to become what it is," Heisler said. "This is something that was inspired by a widow of a Port Authority police officer, and it just started escalating and getting bigger and bigger and bigger. As soon as we realized this was something much bigger than Chris Heisler, we wanted this to keep going on long after I’m gone, so we created an organization to protect that legacy.”

The Honor Network is completely volunteer-based, and Heisler says he and his wife will continue the organization for the rest of his life.