Oct
29
Presidential Elections and Other National Commemorations Make November a Month For Patriotism
Filed Under AFB Press Releases | Leave a Comment
LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas— If ever there was a month for patriotism, November is that time. Not only are national elections held every November, with a presidential election held every four years, but other noteworthy patriotic milestones are also commemorated.
Presidential Elections
We start this November with a historical presidential election. Kerry McCoy, President of Arkansas Flag and Banner, wants everyone to get into the electoral spirit. Her business now offers collectible “VOTE Democratic” or “VOTE Republican” shoes by TOM. For every pair sold TOM gives a pair to a needy child. www.flagandbanner.com/fab/ftsearch.asp?keywords=tomsshoes&x=14&y=15&searchtitle=TOMS+Shoes. More election merchandise is available onsite.
Marine Corps Birthday
November 10th marks the two hundred and thirty-third birthday of the United States Marine Corps which has been officially celebrated since 1921. Each year Marine Corps Birthday balls are held throughout the country to honor the Marines. Tradition has it that the oldest U.S. Marine present is given the first piece of cake and the second piece is given to the youngest Marine present. Flag and Banner has a lovely selection of gifts for the honorees, as well as patriotic dishes, serving trays and Marine Corps flag kits.
www.flagandbanner.com/holiday/viewholiday.asp?hid=121
Veterans Day
November 11, Veterans Day, honors all those who have fought in defense of the United States. The day commemorates the signing of the Armistice on November 11, 1918, which ended World War I. To respectfully honor those who serve and have served, Flag and Banner carries special grave markers, license plates, hats and flags. During the month of November, FlagandBanner.com will be offering a 25% discount to all veterans with military ID (in store only). www.flagandbanner.com/holiday/viewholiday.asp?hid=23
Thanksgiving
It was O. Henry who called Thanksgiving “…the one day that is purely American,” and it truly is. From its colonial origins as an autumn harvest feast to the present, it is the day that Americans set aside to give thanks for all manner of things in their lives. Flag and Banner has autumn and Thanksgiving banners and flags that depict this time of year.
www.flagandbanner.com/holiday/viewholiday.asp?hid=24
For more information on flags or to purchase patriotic items, visit www.FlagandBanner.com.
Other information on the Flag and Banner website includes:
Half Staff E-mail Alert
To register for a free email alert notification when the President calls for the flag to be lowered to half staff, register at http://www.flagandbanner.com/mlsubscription.asp
Oct
23
Awakening Dreamland
Filed Under AFB in Print, Current Events, Dreamland Ballroom | Leave a Comment
Arkansas Times
October 23, 2008
Flag and Banner owner wants to bring ballroom back.
Ninth street businesses like the Gem Pharmacy, Children’s Drug, the Elite Barber Shop, People’s Undertaking, the Vincennes Hotel, dentist Dr. Charles Hill, the Gypsy Tea Room, and others filled the African American community’s everyday needs. But Dreamland Ballroom, on the third floor of the Taborian Hall at Ninth and State streets, fed the spirit, with the music of “Fatha” Earl Hines, Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Louis Jordan, and later Ray Charles and B.B. King, to name just a few of the famed musicians who played there.
Dreamland fell silent in 1970 as did neighboring businesses. But the music was back last month, when contemporary acts played a benefit concert to help in the restoration of the ballroom by Taborian hall owner Kerry McCoy.
McCoy renovated Taborian hall in 1991 for her business, Arkansas Flag and Banner. She’s completed the first and second floor, and has now turned her attention to a $1.2 million project to renovate the 8,000-square-foot ballroom, with its peach-painted balcony and box seats and stage, as an events center.
Architectural and engineering drawings are done, but McCoy laughed, her timing on getting a loan - in the midst of today’s backing crisis - has been off. But, she said, “I ain’t giving up yet. I get e-mail every week from someone wanting to rent it.” She hopes to have it open by this time next year.
Taborian Hall like the Mosaic Templars building, was built to house an insurance company run by a black fraternity, the Knights and Daughters of the Tabor. It opened in 1918, and like the Mosaic Templars building, housed a pharmacy along with doctor’s offices and the Ritz Beer Garden. during World War II, it housed the black USO club. It was built as an addition to a 19th century building that faced State Street.
McCoy has been working with a freelance historian to compile information and artifacts that tell the story of Taborian hall. “The focus of our building,”McCoy said, “is going to be just the things that happened in the buliding, the great acts that played here.” The Mosaic Templars will offer the rest of the picture of Ninth Street.
Oct
22
Race for the Cure 2008
Filed Under AFB's Philanthropy | Leave a Comment
The 15th Annual Race for the Cure took place on Saturday, October 11th, and once again, Arkansas’ Flag and Banner was there. The Flag and Banner showroom opened at 7 a.m. to greet racers with free parking, and 50% off all Pink Ribbon products. As in the past, Flag and Banner fielded it’s all-star team of racers, consisting of Meghan Pittman, Susan Crotts, Carolyn Crocker, Billie Miller, and Kristin Hart. Nearly 46,000 women took part in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in downtown Little Rock Saturday.
After warming up as a lone singer performed a stirring rendition of the National Anthem, our all-stars began the race after calling the Hogs with the other 46,000 participants in a massive show of female Razorbacks support. During the Race, Kristin Hart waved hello to customers that purchased flags from FlagandBanner.com. As they waved back, the flags waved, suspended in the air by the scissor lift they stood in. After completing the race our all-star team of racers returned to Flag and Banner and enjoyed a well-deserved southern-style breakfast prepared by our personal chef, Sam Rutherford. The rest of the day was spent selling all things Pink Ribbon as a percentage of all items sold went to support the Susan G. Komen foundation.
Oct
20
Supporting TOMS Shoes
Filed Under AFB Press Releases, AFB's Philanthropy, AFB's Community Service | Leave a Comment
When Kerry McCoy heard about TOMS shoes for tomorrow and their new line for the upcoming election she was intrigued, until she found out more about the company. “When I heard that for every pair of shoes sold, they give a pair to children in need, I told my employees to sign us up.”
TOMS shoes was founded in 2006 by Blake Mycoskie. The original TOMS shoe has a unique slip-on design comprised of clean lines and lightweight fabrics in vibrant colors and prints. The idea for TOMS was inspired by Blake’s trip to Argentina where he saw the traditional Argentine alpargata. Struck by the poverty and health issues of the country, he set out to reinvent the alpargata for the U.S. market. His goal was simple: to show how together, we can create a better tomorrow by taking compassionate action by providing shoes – One for One.
To realize this purpose, Blake made a commitment to match every pair of TOMS purchased with a pair for a child in need. There are no complicated formulas- it’s simple: If you buy a pair of TOMS, the company will give a pair on your behalf. “I was overwhelmed by the spirit of the South American people, especially those who had so little,” Mycoskie says. “And I was instantly struck with the desire – the responsibility – to do more.”
During his first year in business, TOMS sold 10,000 pairs of shoes and Blake returned to Argentina to lead his first Shoe Drop during which he gave to the children who had inspired him. In November 2007, TOMS had its second Shoe Drop, hand-placing 50,000 pairs of shoes on children in South Africa.
Ms. McCoy said, “I was so inspired by this story. I couldn’t help but want to sell these shoes.”
FlagandBanner.com offers TOMS’ Vote Democrate and Vote Republican shoes. We hope that you will know for every step you take, a child you’ve never met is better off.
If you would like to participate in a shoe drop off, please contact Friends Of TOMS, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to give further aid to communities by the TOMS One for One mission.