UNR Student Veterans Retire Flags for Veterans Week
The 1,000-flag Nevada display on the Gateway Plaza lawn has been an annual campus tradition since 2012.
Updated on Nov. 11, 2026 in Military Jobs
Student veterans at the University of Nevada, Reno marked Veterans Week on Tuesday with a flag retirement ceremony that retires American flags no longer fit to fly. The event followed a display of 1,000 flags planted in the shape of Nevada on the lawn of Gateway Plaza earlier in the week.
Why it matters
For veterans and military families in Reno, the ceremony is a visible reminder that the university campus is a place where student veterans gather and support one another. It also shows how veterans on campus are organizing their own observances of the holiday week.
Organizers planted 1,000 flags in the shape of Nevada on the Gateway Plaza lawn, a display held every year since 2012. The available reporting does not give attendance figures or the number of flags retired at the ceremony.
The players
UNR Veteran Services
The University of Nevada, Reno office that helps veterans and family members before enrollment and after they arrive on campus.
John Pratt
Interim director of UNR Veteran Services.
Jake Medlock
Student veteran and senior student staff member with UNR Veteran Services.
The details
Student veterans at the University of Nevada, Reno held an annual flag retirement ceremony on Tuesday to mark Veterans Week, retiring American flags no longer fit to fly. Earlier in the week, organizers planted 1,000 flags in the shape of Nevada on the lawn of Gateway Plaza, a display held every year since 2012. John Pratt, interim director of UNR Veteran Services, and student veteran Jake Medlock, a senior student staff member, were involved with the observance.
Timeline
Earlier in the week of November 10, 2026: 1,000 flags planted on the Gateway Plaza lawn.
Tuesday, November 10, 2026: Veterans Week flag retirement ceremony and Marine Corps birthday observed.
The Truckee Meadows View
The Gateway Plaza display has been held annually since 2012, so this year's 1,000-flag Nevada shape continues a tradition now more than a decade old. Students and staff are keeping that observance going on the UNR campus rather than letting it fade.
If you are a student veteran or a family member of one, UNR Veteran Services can help with enrollment questions and campus services before you arrive and after. The campus display and ceremony are open to the community, so you can see the flags on the Gateway Plaza lawn.
The takeaway
The Gateway Plaza flag display has returned every year since 2012, and this year's observance shows student veterans keeping the tradition going. If you want to support veterans on campus, UNR Veteran Services is the office to contact.
Further reading
For more on veterans' programs and career paths in the region, see Military Jobs in Reno.
Source note: This article includes information reported by KRXI.
