ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, March 27, 1997 TAG: 9703280001
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: N-13 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB SPENCER SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES
Richard Raymond doesn't know why the name of Jo Lane Sterm appears on the Roanoke Battalion flag, but he believes he has an obligation to find the answer.
Uncovering old mysteries and laying claim to a recently discovered World War II medal won at Omaha Beach are only part of a treasury of history to be found at the Roanoke Armory.
Who is Jo Lane Stern, and why is his name hand-embroidered with such proud, bold dignity across the entire bottom of a Roanoke Battalion flag?
The battalion's historical assistant, retired Sgt. Richard Raymond, is digging through old records and sending off inquiries to any person, library, business organization or institution that might be able to offer a clue or documents about the people and activities of his National Guard Battalion.
He quickly explains the reason for his many hours of searching. "This flag and battle awards are a visible symbol of this unit. They remind us that we have a lot of high standards to uphold."
After months of inquiries, the story of "The Jo Lane Stern flag" still contains enough curiosities and incomplete personal histories to keep Raymond digging.
What he knows so far is that, a few years ago, the widow of a Guard member found the flag in her attic in Roanoke. She had no way of knowing why the flag was so carefully stored, what its significance was or how old it was. Since her husband had a close and active association with his National Guard battalion, she concluded it must have been associated with the battalion, based in Roanoke.
Bits and pieces of information from various parts of Virginia indicated the flag is an example of an important transition in American history.
The flag itself is similar to the Virginia state flag, with the addition of the embroidered identification across the bottom. The hand sewing probably is an example of a tradition: Wives often donated flags to the regiment.
By searching newspaper archives and fragments of other records, Raymond learned that, after the Civil War, the National Guard was mostly inactive except for brief periods. Stern, a Confederate officer who became a lawyer in Richmond, was state commander in the early 1900s.
"When the United States entered the 'Great War' - World War I - he acted promptly, vigorously and efficiently to prepare Virginia soldiers for combat service," a battalion statement says. "The name of 'Jo Lane Stern Battalion' was adopted in his honor, by members of the Roanoke National Guard units."
Despite Stern's prominence, Raymond has not yet learned who authorized the flag and under what circumstances, or who presented it to the battalion.
In his digging to resurrect symbols of honor, Raymond uncovered a piece of an old certificate that went with a battalion medal.
With further research, he verified that, soon after the Normandy invasion, the French government awarded Roanoke's citizen soldiers the "Cross of War - With Silver Star" for overcoming severe casualties on Omaha Beach, then pushing on to capture important German positions. But the medal was never presented.
He notified the French of the oversight. As a result, the French government will formally present the medal to the battalion during next summer's training.
The French medal will take its place among the large blue flags and battle streamers, next to a symbol from even more recent history: a silver bowl on display near the main entrance, a 1987 award for Best Battalion in the United States.
LENGTH: Medium: 69 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Retired Guardsman David Douthat of Lynchburg mounted theby CNBflag so it could be framed.