As Bart Tasca helped Belmont Village of Buffalo Grove hoist its new corporate flag during a special Flag Day ceremony Thursday, he made sure to revel in the moment for a couple of reasons.
The ceremony at the assisted living facility, after all, put a spotlight on Tasca’s ingenuity and capped his effort to propose and design the first-ever corporate flag at the Belmont Village location.
The eight-year resident of Belmont Village, who has developmental disabilities, said his passion for flags goes back decades, when he started collecting flags at the age of 8.
His collection totaled more than 500, ranging from sport flags to state and country flags, when he approached Belmont Village employees about his idea to create one for a place that he calls home.
“It’s the highlight of my year,” said Tasca, who also celebrated his 63rd birthday Thursday.
As he pulled the flag strings during the ceremony and helped raise the American flag, followed by the new one for Belmont Village, Tasca was joined by more than 15 members of his family, as well as Buffalo Grove Village President Beverly Sussman and members of the village’s police and fire departments.
Sussman said officials came out to honor the American flag on Flag Day but also to recognize Tasca for developing and acting on his unique idea.
“During my remarks, I said it’s so amazing that with 4,000 employees at Belmont Village, it took one resident from Belmont Village Buffalo Grove, Bart, to come up with this wonderful idea. It was so commendable and it was his birthday today, so it’s a double whammy for him,” Sussman said. “It made Bart feel so important and very much appreciated by everyone. When I heard the story behind it, I wouldn’t miss it.”
Measuring at 5-by-8 feet, the emerald green nylon flag represents the signature color associated with Belmont Village, while the large silver “V” signifies the community the flag represents.
Tasca said he first approached Belmont Village administrators with the idea after noticing how the facility’s flagpole lacked something.
A native of the Northwest Side of Chicago and a Cubs fan, Tasca moved into the facility in 2009 with his mother, Glory, who died at age 86 in 2015.
A self-proclaimed vexillologist who started taking interest in the history, symbolism and usage of flags as a child, Tasca said the first flag in his collection was the American flag, although his personal favorite is his Cubs flag.
“I found it to be such a great idea when Bart told me,” said Maureen Chippas, executive director of Belmont Village of Buffalo Grove, which serves more than 120 residents and has been a mainstay in Buffalo Grove for 15 years. “You think of the Hyatt or Hilton, and you think of big companies with corporate flags, and I thought it was absolutely right on.”
But Chippas told Tasca they first had to ask the founder of Belmont Village, which has 24 assisted living communities across the country along with memory care and independent living facilities.
Click here to read the full article by the Buffalo Grove Countryside.