Freeport bid goodbye to one of its famous Flag Ladies Tuesday by recreating the mission of patriotic expression that became her hallmark.

JoAnn Miller passed away on Feb. 22 at the age of 88, but for 18 years, she and Carmen Footer and Elaine Greene stood on the same street corner in Freeport once a week to wave American flags at passing cars.

The trio began their work following the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, as an expression of solidarity and support, both for America and eventually the men and women who served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

On Tuesday, a crowd of about 60 people stood on both sides of Main Street at that same corner with School Street, waving flags at traffic. The crowd was all ages, some wearing uniforms and hats depicting their service both past and present. As was the tradition for the flag ladies, cars and trucks blew their horns as they drove past. 

Footer died in 2023 at age 81.

Greene was on hand Tuesday, at times smiling and at other times looking emotional. She said she was attending “with a heavy heart.”

When asked if she expected a crowd this size to show up she said, “No, and God bless every one of them.”

Greene said she knew Miller would be touched by the outpouring of support but would not have liked being the center of attention. 

“She’d be embarrassed,” Greene said with a grin. “She was quite shy, actually. She would probably duck her head down and look around.”

The three ladies would go on to gain statewide fame and even national attention. Along with their usual Tuesday morning posts, the ladies also worked with veterans’ groups and other organizations that honored veterans such as Wreaths Across America.

Greene said she, Miller and Footer were old enough to remember the Vietnam War, and how poorly the public treated returning veterans. In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, she said they all knew it would lead to America going to war once again.

“Our friends went into Vietnam, and they were called ‘baby killers,’ and all that, and we didn’t want that to happen to our men and women in the military ever again,” she said. “So, we decided to try to do something that was patriotic that would bring people together.” 

Greene stressed that the ladies never took a political stance, only a patriotic one.

“You know, there’s the red, there’s the blue, but we were red, white and blue,” she said.

Behind the crowd on Tuesday, a small easel bore a posterboard featuring an array of photos, with Miller’s in the center. Ron Holley, 88, took the photos. An amateur photographer, he said he moved to Freeport when he retired shortly after the attacks. He volunteered to take photos for about 15 years of the ladies’ work.

Deciding to help, he said, was easy. He used to work for a dredging company in New York City, and on Sept. 11, 2001, he was in the company’s offices on Staten Island, which overlooked the harbor. 

“I saw both buildings go down,” he said.

The Flag Ladies officially retired from their regular appearances in 2019, and Holley said he wasn’t sure how many people would remember what Miller and her fellow flag ladies did.

“I’m very surprised to see so many people show up, and I’m glad they showed up,” he said.

Greene said many of the people standing with her Tuesday morning had joined the ladies in the past. 

“It is bittersweet,” she said. She then paused, looking away in silence, then added, “but it is sweet.”