Henderson City Flag Flies High

Photos by Darrin Phegley

From a Sketch to an Official City Flag

Jax’s flag design started as a sketch he made in his notebook. He found himself wondering, “what would a flag for Henderson even look like?” It didn’t take him long to come up with his design, and once he did, he reached out to Mayor Steve Austin and asked if Henderson even had a flag at all. Henderson did have a flag, but it was outdated and not flown anywhere in present times. Jax brought up his design, and Steve Austin thought it was a great idea and invited him to a city commission meeting where he displayed his flag for all the attendees. 

A Design Representing Henderson and Kentucky

On the flag itself, you will find many elements that are representative of Henderson. The bridge of Henderson is surrounded by a white circle bearing the title of the city. Within the circle, there is the Ohio river under the bridge and the year that Henderson was formed, 1797. Surrounding the circle are two pieces of goldenrod, the Kentucky state flower. Jax says these goldenrods symbolize peace. The blue all around the flag represents the “beautiful waters around our city” and the black bars represent determination. The black bars on either side of the flag not only represent determination, but they also have another meaning. The black bars also are representative of the two rivers that flow through Henderson, the Ohio and the Green. Beneath the white circle is Kentucky’s motto, “United We Stand, Divided We Fall.” 

Jax’s flag design encompasses many elements of Henderson and Kentucky. As one would expect, the city commissioners Brad Staton, Robert Pruitt, Austin Vowels, and Rodney Thomas, along with Mayor Steve Austin, were thrilled to have the chance to display this flag in Henderson. Jax gives thanks to all of the commissioners and the mayor, saying that “they helped me make my dream come true.”

Jax says he has always been enamored with flags, and he will often play a game with his father where his dad will show him a flag from anywhere around the world and Jax will have to guess what it is. Jax claims he is rarely wrong, and he can quickly name each country’s flag when presented with them. His love for flags has brought something beautiful to Henderson, and many in the town have praised Jax for his contribution. According to Jax, “this was a bit too much recognition to take in all at once,” and he does not currently have any other projects in the works. 

Making Henderson Proud

Jax was recognized at the November school board meeting with a medal given by superintendent, Dr. Bob Lawson. Jax also says his classmates and teachers, especially his social studies teacher, were very proud of him and thought it was cool he could contribute something like this to Henderson. 

The new Henderson city flag flies high above the municipal building, and the flags can be purchased at Abba Promotions in downtown Henderson. At the Henderson Tourism store in the Depot, t-shirts with the flag design will be able to be purchased very soon.  

At the end of the interview, Jax’s character was shining brightly as he described his thoughts about Henderson. “I just want to say one thing: Henderson is an excellent town and I want my flag to represent the absolute beauty of what you’ll truly be able to find in Henderson. There are all of the great people, attractions, everything I want it to represent very well, and I hope it becomes a symbol of what Henderson could truly be.”

Crystal Matthews, Jax’s mother, says she is “super proud of him. I’m proud of all that he has overcome over the years. He’s done amazing.”

Thank you, Jax, for not only caring so much about Henderson, but for putting your passions to great use and giving our city something we can be proud of. We look forward to seeing where you will go and what you will do next.  

Kaycee Garner has lived in Henderson her entire life and plans to keep it that way. She loves animals and movies, and enjoys drawing with charcoal and working on local political campaigns in her spare time.