Motion to replace flags at Yanceyville Public Safety Memorial fails for lack of second

A proposal to change the flags displayed at Yanceyville’s Public Safety Memorial did not advance after the council failed to second the motion on May 3.

Public commenter Fred Smith had urged the council to use a single American flag at the veterans memorial and recommended that service flags represent firefighters, emergency services and the sheriff’s department. "I am Fred Smith ... This is the third time I have spoken to the Council on this subject," he told the council and argued one American flag would suffice given the memorial’s dimensions.

Councilman Keith Tatum offered to pay for the service flags and moved to swap the current flags surrounding the Public Safety Memorial for service flags, saying he would "pay for the service flags for the next three years." Councilman Brian Massey said he supported honoring both veterans and public safety, noting the American flag honors both groups. Mayor Alvin Foster called for a second but none was offered, and the motion failed.

Mayor Pro Tem Odessa Gwynn reiterated a separate request to develop a formal agenda policy. The council earlier had appointed Fred Smith co‑chair of the Town’s Public Safety Memorial Committee and approved three flagpoles around the memorial in a prior motion.

No formal change to the memorial’s flags was adopted at the May 3 meeting.