Memorial Day: The Price of the Folded Flag

Howdy, Aggies,

Texas A&M University recently ranked among the most veteran-friendly institutions in the United States, and first in Texas. This ranking fills me with pride, as I know it does every Aggie. Texas A&M has a rich military history, with Aggies serving in every major U.S. armed conflict since its founding. This tradition is sure to endure, with hundreds of members of the Corps of Cadets aiming to commission into the armed forces. In the 2024-25 academic year, our student body included over 1,100 prior-service veterans pursuing higher education after honorably serving our nation.

There is, however, another important group of Aggies who are part of Texas A&M’s military community on campus. There is no official count of their numbers at Texas A&M, and their sacrifices often receive less public attention. They carry a burden both unique and profound as members of a solemn community no one seeks to join — Gold Star families.

The Gold Star designation harks back to World War I, when homes displayed service flags bearing a blue star for each family member on active duty in the armed forces. If a member was killed in action, the blue star was replaced with a gold one. Today, we define Gold Star families as the immediate family members of those who died on active-duty military service.

Earlier this year, The Association of Former Students had the honor of hosting one Gold Star family at our Endowed Aggie Ring Scholarship dinner, where Grace Sartor ’27 shared the story of Sgt. Maj. James G. “Ryan” Sartor — a member of the elite U.S. Army Special Forces, the devoted husband of Deanna and the selfless father to Grace and her brothers, Stryder ’25 and Garrett.

Grace described her father as a leader from the front. As sergeant major of the 10^th Special Forces Group (Airborne), he pledged to complete at least one mission with every team in the company while deployed to Faryab Province, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel. On July 13, 2019, while on a mission with the final team and just three weeks before the end of his 12^th deployment, Sartor died of injuries sustained from enemy fire.

Sartor was loyal to Texas A&M, despite never having enrolled there. Grace said her father spoke of Texas A&M with such pride that, for many years, she and her brothers assumed he had attended. He knew that Texas A&M was built on the same values that guided his own life — honor, leadership and selfless service.

It was the dedication to these values that inspired the Sartor family to establish the Sgt. Maj. James G. “Ryan” Sartor Endowed Memorial Aggie Ring Scholarship for students who have lost an immediate family member in the line of active duty. More than just honoring her father’s legacy, Grace and her family wanted to ensure other Gold Star family members at Texas A&M are supported, given all they have endured. The endowment invests in the next generation of leaders and warriors that Texas A&M is known to produce.

Upon enlistment or commission, every member of the United States armed forces takes an oath to support and defend the United States against all enemies. There is an adage that describes the implicit obligation included in this oath; that in taking it, the service member also signs a “blank check,” made payable to the United States for any amount — up to and including his or her life.

There is no formal oath, however, taken by the spouses, parents, siblings or children of the service members. These families know that, without a moment’s notice, they may be required to give our nation more than it can ever return. Their sacrifice does not end on the battlefield but continues every day; represented by a folded flag, a medal affixed to a ribbon and, perhaps, a gold star in the window.

On this Memorial Day, I humbly ask you to join me in reflecting on the sacrifice of more than 1.3 million Americans, and more than 1,100 Aggies, who have lost their lives in service to our nation; as well as the immeasurable number of loved ones left to mourn. While we can never give back what was taken, it is our responsibility to ensure they know their loss is not forgotten or taken for granted.

May God bless our service members. May God bless the family of Sgt. Maj. Ryan Sartor and the thousands of Gold Star family members who may never be publicly recognized. May God bless each of you as you remember and honor these men and women.

With great respect,

Porter Garner ’79
President and CEO