Threads of Honor

Threads of Honor is a true story of courage and sacrifice, of Boy Scouts learning about perseverance, of the great men and women of the American space program, and of the unquenchable spirit of a most remarkable American flag.

The book’s rich appendix adds a 28-page history of the American Flag over its 230-year existence, including key events in American history that involved the flag. Following that is an authoritative section on flag care and proper flag etiquette, according to official guidelines adopted by the United States Congress. This appendix was not present in the first edition—only in the second edition.

There is a photo gallery documenting the incredible story of this flag, which is also new to the second edition and may not be present in used copies.

Gordon Ryan is a published novelist, a former City Manager, and served in the United States Air Force with Major Tolbert. Ryan is married to Colleen Sterling of Christchurch, New Zealand, where they have been residing for the past few years. They are in the process of relocating back to the United States. They are the parents of six children and eleven grandchildren.

Threads of Honor—the story of Troop 514 and the American flag’s amazing journey aboard a space shuttle—was written as a result of Ryan’s lifelong friendship with Scoutmaster Bill Tolbert.