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NAVA 49

NAVA 49 Flag Image

NAVA 49 Flag Photo

NAVA 49: Ottawa, Ontario
Ottawa Marriott Hotel
October 16–18, 2015
Details and additional photos of NAVA 49: The NAVA 49 Flag:  Reid Reynolds and her father, Ken Reynolds, designed the flag with input from John Hartvigsen, Pete Loeser, and Jeremy Hammond.  Although a simple and minimal design, the flag covers a lot of contextual ground.  First, the flag is restricted to red and white—the national colours of Canada.  In this instance, the white field also signifies snow and winter, the latter being the predominant season for most of the country (and the reason why NAVA 49 could not be held in Ottawa in February 2015 for fear of freezing most of the attendees—it was -32 degrees Fahrenheit on February 15, the 50th anniversary of the Canadian flag).  The silhouette next to the hoist depicts the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill, the well-known building that most represents Ottawa to the country and the world.  The maple leaf in the upper fly represents the nation as a whole and Canada’s best-known symbol.  The flag’s proportions are 1:2.

Meeting flag description from Flag Research Quarterly 11: The Flags of NAVA

Organizing Committee Chair: Kenneth R. Reynolds

The George Henry Preble Lecture

Dr. Claire Boudreau, the Chief Herald of Canada, and other members of the staff of the Canadian Heraldic Authority delivered "The Enduring Appeal of Heraldic Flags in Canada" in the auditorium of the Ottawa Public Library. (The address is summarized in NAVA News no. 226 (Dec. 2015) pp. 1, 4).
See the NAVA 49 Preble Program.

Dr. Claire Boudreau

the Chief Herald of Canada

The Presentations
  • "But It Was Ours": The Red Ensign, Dominion Day, and the Effects of Patriotic Memory on the Canadian Flag Debate – Hugh L. Brady, J.D., Texas and Virginia.
  • The Importance of Good Flag Design: Alternate Flag Proposals – Roger Eriksen, M.F.A., Colorado.
  • From Flying Flag to Museum Flag – Caterina Florio, Ontario.
  • The Flag of Our Fathers? The Manitoba Provincial Flag and British Cultural Hegemony in Manitoba, 1870–1966 –  David W. Grebstad, M.A., CD, Ontario.
  • Survey Results: College Students, the American Flag, and Other Powerful Patriotic Symbols – Scot M. Guenter, Ph.D., California.
  • The Many Aspects of Vexillology – John M. Hartvigsen, Utah.
  • Flags of the Fallen – Steven A. Knowlton, M.L.I.S., Tennessee.
  • Legends of the Triforce: A Link to the Past – Vernón León, New York.
  • A ‘Red Rag’ to an Infuriated Bull: American Flags, Canadian Vexilloclasts and the Origins of Canadian Flag Culture, 1880–1930 – Forrest D. Pass, Ph.D., Ontario.
  • The Red Ensign and the Maple Leaf: Canada’s Two Flag Tradition – Bruce K. Patterson, HRHSC, Ontario.
  • Old Flags, New Meanings - Anne M. Platoff, M.S., M.A., California and Steven A. Knowlton, M.L.I.S., Tennessee.

The Whitney Smith Dinner

The Whitney Smith Dinner was held at the Summit Room on the 29th floor of the Ottawa Marriott Hotel.  The keynote speaker was Robert Labonté, of the Public Works and Government Services Canada / Travaux publics et Services gouvernement aux Canada.  Labonté held everyone spellbound as he explained his daily assignment of raising new Canadian flags atop the Canadian Parliament’s Peace Tower.  These flags, each flown for one day on Canada’s “national flagpole,” are presented to Canadians without charge under a program so popular that the waiting list to receive a 7½ foot by 15 foot flag is currently 54 years long.

The Tour

Saturday afternoon we toured the Canadian Museum of History where various flags and flag related artifacts were graciously displayed exclusively for NAVA 49 attendees.  In two sessions to accommodate the group’s size, attendees heard fascinating details from museum historian Forrest D. Pass and textile conservator Caterina Florio about the particular flags on display.

Announced Awards and Honors:
  • Captain William Driver Award - Hugh L. Brady, Ph.D., J.D.
  • Kevin Harrington Award - Forrest D. Pass, Ph.D.
  • Doreen Braverman Award - Randolph (Randy) Smith, Mary Ann Doktor-Smith, and Advertising Flag Company
  • Presidential Citation - Charles A. Spain, J.D.

    • Fiscal Sponsors:

    President’s Reception: CRW Flags
    Driver Award: CRW Flags, Dixie Flag Mfg. Co.

    Attendees
    John Adcock* Henriette Patricia Essapo (Cameroon)* Marianne Loeser* Diego Sanchez
    Mary Ansoff* Caterina Florio Pete Loeser Clyde Simpson
    Peter Ansoff David-Roger Gagnon Jack Lowe Collin Simpson
    Amber Atteberry Hank Gigandet Karen Lowe* Chris Smith
    Chris Bedwell Dave Grebstad Ted McNabb Larry Soucier*
    Jim Brown Scot Guenter Louis Maxime Meka Meka (Cameroon) Charles Spain
    Hugh Brady Michael Halleran Rich Monahan Jeff Spain*
    Al Cavalari Robert Harper Carlos Morales-Ramirez Gwen Spicer
    Joe Cook* Susan Harper* Edward Murphy Gus Tracchia
    James Croft John Hartvigsen Forrest Pass Pete Van de Putte
    Byron DeLear Lee Herold Bruce Patterson Vanessa Van de Putte
    Fred Drews Richard Hobart Annie Platoff Cindy Williams
    Barbara Dundas* Graeme Jagger* Michael Platoff*
    Diana Durish* Ted Kaye Rob Raeside
    Eric Durish Steven Knowlton Ken Reynolds
    Roger Eriksen Vernón León Reid Reynolds*

    * companion
    Flag image drawn by Clay Moss – Flag photo from Flag Research Quarterly 11: The Flags of NAVA