The Cost of the Flag
The actual cost to manufacture a Purple Heart Medal, a U.S. military decoration awarded to service members wounded or killed in action against an enemy of the United States or as a result of enemy action, ranges between $350-$1400. Since the first medal was awarded officially in 1932 nearly 2 million medals have been pinned on service members with 430,000 laid on the coffins of those killed in action.
The flag used to drape the coffin of a US Service member costs about $100.00. The veteran's administration reports that it maintains at least 10 million graves for veterans around the country and it does not include those buried in private and family cemeteries.
We are a country divided and whether you agree or disagree with government policies, how you feel personally doesn’t matter as we approach the 250th anniversary of our Independence Day. The United States turns 250 years old on July 4, 2026, and whether we feel proud, frustrated, hopeful, or disillusioned, the milestone itself is bigger than any single political moment. It’s a reminder that the country has always been divided in some way and has always found a way to continue.
This milestone invites us to reflect on the cost of the freedoms we argue about, recognize that disagreement is part of the American design, honor the people who paid the physical price of keeping the nation intact and to consider what it means to inherit a 250-year-old experiment in self-government. You don’t have to feel patriotic to acknowledge the weight of that.
I could tell you gut wrenching stories of suffering and death of services members and their families who are left behind. I could talk about the hole left by their passing. I could talk about the 22 services members who die every day from wounds no one can see. What I want to talk about is that flag.
As a Psychic Medium, military funerals are the most difficult. The presentation of the flag at the graveside, precisely folded 13 times is both magnificent and soul wrenching. At a military graveside, the ranking officer will present the flag to the family and may appear to be the only one physically present, but energetically, spiritually, and historically, thousands of service members who have already crossed stand with them. The presentation of the flag is never done by one person. It is done by the entire lineage.
What stands behind the officer is not a chaotic crowd. It is an organized, intentional presence, it is a silent battalion, standing at attention. The officer kneeling is not alone. They are the representative of every Soldier, Marine, Sailor, Airman, and service member. The dead stand with the living because service does not end at death.
This Fourth of July, as fireworks bloom across the sky and the grill sparks to life, pause for one moment. One breath.
Remember that every flag waving tonight was paid for in lives, in sons and daughters, in mothers and fathers, in futures given so others could live theirs. Freedom has a cost, and its receipt is written in folded flags and silent salutes. Celebrate, laugh, gather, but let one heartbeat of gratitude rise for those who can’t be here to celebrate with us. Because In The Light, We are All Love.