Robert Lucas and his wife, Joann, run a family heating and air conditioning business in Germanton. One day, he said, their daughter came home and told them what was going on with the Christian flag in King. Now, the Lucases are helping out by standing vigil and putting up a canopy shelter to protect others from the elements.
Every morning at 5:30 they put up the shelter, taking it down about midnight. Next day, someone in the family business does it all over again.
“I believe our freedoms are being taken away a little bit by a little bit, and it is time for us to take a stand,” Lucas said. “I am a Christian, and this flag is important to me, but this is more about freedom of speech here.”
Lucas said that he and other like-minded people do not believe that the display of the Christian flag on public property violates the constitutional ban on establishing a religion.
Lucas said he believes that Christians are being singled out for attack — that if the flag of some other religion had been flying in the park, “it wouldn’t be an issue.” He added that he would have no objection to flags put up by non-Christian religions.
“They want to take Jesus out of the prayers that involve participation in government,” he said, in reference to battles over sectarian prayer that have taken place in Forsyth County and other municipalities.
The participation of veterans in the vigil played a large role in how Lucas decided to help.
“So many of them have fought and died for our freedoms, so we have tried to provide them with whatever they need while they were here,” Lucas said. “They needed a place to sit and stay dry. That is the least we can do.”
— Wesley Young
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