Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist; Steve Cybart, county commander and with the Henry Mosher Post 638 American Legion; and Shannon Anzalone, administrator at Holtquist Place, are pictured Wednesday. P-J photo by Eric Tichy

It was a high school student in 1958 who is credited with designing and sewing the first American flag to feature 50 stars. Bob Heft had come up with the idea as part of a show-and-tell project at his school in Lancaster, Ohio.

At the time America had 48 states, but Heft had a hunch Alaska and Hawaii would soon be admitted as new states. He used a flag his parents had received as a wedding gift to craft his 50-star version.

According to Steve Cybart, county commander and member of the American Legion post in Falconer, the project didn’t go over well with his parents.

“His mom came in and said, ‘What are you doing?’ ” Cybart said Wednesday during a brief Flag Day ceremony at Hultquist Place on the Lutheran Jamestown campus. “He didn’t bother to tell her that he was going to be cutting up a flag. … She was not happy.”

As the story goes, Heft received a B-minus from his teacher, who did offer to change the grade if Congress ever accepted the flag’s design.

Two years later, after Alaska and Hawaii became states, Heft indeed received his A. In fact, President Dwight D. Eisenhower reportedly called Heft to share the news that his design had been selected as the official flag.

“So, that’s just a little history of what this flag is and an idea that came from a small village from a junior in high school,” Cybart said. “That’s one of the things about our great nation. It doesn’t matter where you come from or how small your idea seems, you just never know, it could turn into anything.”

Shannon Anzalone, administrator at Holtquist Place, thanked Cybart, past county commander Marty Schroeder and Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist for attending Wednesday’s ceremony. She noted the importance of Flag Day and its meaning for the country.

“Today we honor the stars and stripes as the emblem of our country and the symbol of all that our patriotism means,” Anzalone said. “It represents our peace and security, our civil and political liberty, our freedom of religious worship, our family, our friends and our home. Because of this, we are able to freely gather here today and enjoy this ceremony.”Sundquist said he was honored to be among residents of Holtquist Place to recognize Flag Day.

Sundquist said he was honored to be among residents and to take part in the ceremony.

“Thank you all for continuing this tradition of honoring our stars and stripes,” he said. “We’ve been through a lot as a nation, as a community, as a city in the last several years. .. But one thing has remained constant, which is our love for our country and our ability to honor and remember that we are all U.S. citizens above all else.”

He added, “We take this time, this opportunity, to be here to be grounded and to remember our country. Remember what allows us to be free and, in many cases, honor those men and women who have allowed us to continue that freedom.”