What started as a search for a new American flag to fly in honor of her son serving in the Navy turns a mother into an American patriot.
Mary Leavitt is known as the Flag Lady and spoke at the Lima Rotary Club on Monday. She is the founder of the "Flag Lady's Flag Store" located in Columbus. It all started when she couldn't find any retail stores that carried the American flag. She ended up at a wholesale place where she got her flag along with a dozen others to sell. That was the beginning as she sold the stars and stripes out of the trunk of her car in 1980. Leavitt was raised in a patriotic family and her enthusiasm for the U S of A was infectious. She believes that the country as a whole is still proud to stand under the colors of Old Glory.
"We really are just a wonderful country and there's no doubt about it that when anything negative happens, people come in to my store and it's just wonderful," commented Leavitt.
Mary was recognized as the 2016 Small Business Champion in Ohio by the National Federation of Independent Business.
