The Fort Benton City Council is considering a proposal to erect an enormous 20' by 38' American flag. The flag is to be donated by the Flying Freedom Forward project, which also proposed the idea. The initiative is the mission of Nate Duram, from Eureka Montana. If the city agrees to go forward on the project, it will be the second in Duram's larger mission to see a large flag flying over every town in the state of Montana.
Duram is a physically large man, with an even larger personality, who describes his work as a mission from God. Over the past several years, he has worked towards raising the money and then erecting the 80 foot flagpole in Eureka. Along the way, he experienced a religious conversion, becoming a Christian and being baptized last summer. During a conference, he attended in the fall, Duram felt called to take on the mission of ensuring that every town in the state has a flag proudly flying over it.
"The mission is for people like me, who have fallen through the cracks in Montana and actually in America in general," Nate explained. He went on to explain that there are plenty of men like him, who simply never came to understand the importance of following God, pride in our nation, and the values that our country/communities were built on. "I was allowed to go my own way, which is because I have free will. Now, I'm following God, I've seen how easy it is for us to go astray. So I felt this need to do missionary service in Montana, because we literally send missionaries all over the world. I believe in the lifeguard principle: you save yourself first before you can save others."
Focus on saving ourselves, according to Nate, involves teaching our communities to know God and take pride in their nation again. "One thing I have learned is that the darkest roads you walk are the ones that you walk with your eyes closed. There is no path in this world that God isn't lighting. It's just that you just haven't opened your eyes to Him. His light covers the whole world."
Erecting flags in Montana towns involves several steps for the communities who choose to take on the project. There is a community fund raising element, that takes place through the inclusion of a time capsule in the project. However, the majority of the needed supplies will have already been purchased. Durham explains that the funds raised go toward the purchase of supplies to put up the flag pole for the next 2 flags. This is why the organization is called "Freedom Flying Forward" because each community pays forward after having received from another town in Montana. The time capsule itself is filled with essays from local students and items from Community members, who are given the opportunity to add personal contribute to the project financial, as well as the contents of the time capsule.
Nate explains that he looked for God's direction when choosing where to work toward putting up his next flag. He chose Fort Benton as a starting point after Lewis Johnson, a friend of his who was paralyzed in the line of duty while working for the Montana Highway Patrol, chose to relocate to the city. He decided "I'll find out where Kate and Lewis are... and I've heard that they were here." That brought Fort Benton onto his radar. From there, Durham noted that Fort Benton is the birthplace of Montana. He pointed out that various things came together in that city for the state to be born, therefore it made sense that he should come to Fort Benton to birth his mission to see flags flying over every town in Montana.
Durham isn't shy about sharing his convictions or his past, explaining that he lived a wild life before coming to faith. His pastor compared his conversation to Paul on the road to Damascus, explaining that he was the last one you would expect to see become a believer. With his new life Durham has brought a zeal for serving, which hard to miss when you visit with him.
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