The American flag not only represents Matthew Foster’s pride for our country, but also for the U.S. Army and those he served with – both living and dead.

“We lost one of my buddies when we were deployed, so to see an American flag not looking like it should kind of pulls on my heartstrings a little bit,” said Foster, 37, a Journeyman Lineman in Tyler.

Earlier this year, Foster started an effort to replace the tattered U.S. flag and the 15-foot flag pole outside the Tyler Service Center. The flag and pole were damaged during the late January winter storm.

But Foster’s efforts went further, said Steve Barnes, District Manager, East Texas. “He had the idea to convert two bigger light poles into flag poles,” said Barnes. He explained that the light poles were being used to light the smaller flag pole at night.

Foster served in the Army for over five years and was deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan as a combat engineer. His job was to make the roads safe for others by searching for and defusing bombs and IEDs, or improvised explosive devices. 

It was dangerous work. Foster lost a good friend and colleague in Afghanistan in 2012 when an IED exploded while the friend was doing his job.

This spring, Foster received the go-ahead for his patriotic project. “It made me feel like I was helping to make our service center look better,” he said. “It’s kind of a special thing that I could do, I guess.”

Foster and two other employees, Jesse Wyatt and Dennis Morris, started work on the project in late April. Wyatt, who is an Apprentice 3, served in the U.S. Marines. Morris, an Apprentice 6, was in the U.S. Coast Guard. 

The trio repainted the former light poles and installed the hardware. They also repaired and repainted the original, shorter pole. Other employees moved the lights from the top of the poles and installed them on the ground, facing up.

Barnes said the new 30-foot flag poles now display the American and Texas flags. The original pole will be outfitted with a new Oncor flag or another flag for special occasions. The work was done in time for Memorial Day.

“Memorial Day is a special time for me,” Foster said. “I think about all the guys who I served with, especially those who have passed away. Even if I’m out working, whenever I see the flag, it’s like they are there with you still.”