‘I just love this country’
KITCHENER — Canadian flags flap at all red-and-white angles in front of Mathew Speers’ Strasburg Road outpost of patriotism.
They hang from serviceberry and maple tree branches; from stems stuck firmly in the garden and lawn; along winter-worn eaves and behind summer-yearning windows.
The flags, strewn across a driveway-to-driveway front lawn shared by Speers and an approving neighbour, number 211.
Yes, Canada’s 150th birthday arrives Saturday.
And yes, Speers has gone 61 flags beyond the sesquicentennial number to mark the occasion.
So why 211 flags?
“I had the 150 out there and it didn’t look full enough,” explained Speers, a 38-year-old housekeeping manager for a Kitchener auto dealership. “So I just kept going.” Next year, he may add more, he pledges. But first, the Star Wars fan they like to call
Chewie had better check with his wife, Jennifer, and his kids, 11-year-old Ella and 10-year-old Jack.
They did a lot of the flag engineering for the latest edition of a Canada Day display Speers has orchestrated for the past decade.
There’s a yellow “Support Our Troops” ribbon tied around the front maple tree, where a yellow flood light shines at night.
Red flood lights are set up to wash over the flags as evening comes.
“The kids help out. It’s like a family affair. We all get together and decorate the house,” Speers said.
“I just love this country, I get fulfilment out of people honking their horn at me or give me a thumbsup. It’s just to boost their morale, I guess.”