(St. George, UT) - The Dixie State College Army ROTC will perform a formal flag retirement ceremony on Tuesday, September 11, 2012, at 5 p.m., at the DSC Atkin Administration Building, located on 700 East just south of the Eccles Fine Arts Center. All DSC students, faculty and staff, alumni and the community are invited to attend.

A tradition that began in 2010, Dixie State has hosted this solemn patriotic event each September in remembrance of the events of 9/11. Dixie’s Army ROTC will be joined at the ceremony by representatives from the St. George Police and Fire Departments, the Washington County Sheriff’s Department, the St. George VFW chapter and members of Chapter 961 of the Vietnam Veterans of America.

The ceremony will begin at 5 p.m., as the DSC Army ROTC will take down and pay tribute to the flag that has flown in front of the Administration Building for the past year and raise a new flag in its place.

“The flag of the United States of America is a symbol of both our freedom and the ultimate sacrifice many have paid to protect such freedom,” said Major Darin Gumucio, DSC Assistant Professor of Military Science. “Dixie State established the tradition of hosting a flag retirement ceremony in 2010, as a way to honor the victims of 9/11 and those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for freedom’s sake.”

DSC’s Army ROTC will retire several American flags that have flown on Dixie’s campus as part of the ceremony. Community members are also invited to bring tattered and worn flags for retirement and disposal. The public can drop off flags at the DSC Army ROTC Building, located on 800 East just south of the Burns Arena. Flags will also be accepted prior to the ceremony.

“The flag is a constant reminder that freedom isn’t free,” Major Gumucio added. “Such an honored symbol must be retired for the last time after it has become tattered and worn through a sacred and formal ceremony in accordance with the U.S. Flag Code.”

Dixie State’s Army ROTC (Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) program was established in the fall of 2007. DSC's ROTC program is a reserve branch of Southern Utah University's program, which both run through the Utah National Guard. In addition, both DSC and SUU programs are affiliated with the active-duty ROTC program at Brigham Young University.

The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program is a college-based, officer-commissioning program. It is designed as a college elective course that focuses on leadership development, problem solving, strategic planning and professional ethics. Army ROTC units are organized as brigades and battalions.

For more information on the flag retirement ceremony, please contact the Major Gumucio at 435-879-4754, or the DSC Public Relations Office at 435-652-7544.