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Skokie raises new flag after community design contest; local resident designed winning emblem
Summary
The Village of Skokie raised a new flag chosen through a community competition. Designer Buddy Boehm said the flag’s central flame honors Potawatomi heritage, echoes a 1978 Village Hall stained‑glass work and signals the village’s long-standing commitment to welcome and unity.
The Village of Skokie on Friday raised a new municipal flag selected through a community design and feedback process, officials said, and introduced the winning designer, resident Buddy Boehm.
The village official opening the ceremony said the effort began after a 2022 Human Relations Commission review of the village seal and that the new seal adopted in 2025 prompted a community-wide flag design competition that drew nearly 80 unique entries and more than 700 public responses on finalists.
Boehm, who moved to the area from Chicago with his wife and family, said he entered the competition after seeing the call in the village newsletter. "What makes Skokie such a special place is not where we are, but who we are," he said, explaining why he focused on people rather than a literal landscape or landmark.
Boehm said the flag, titled Skokie Spirit, centers on a stylized flame for three reasons. First, he said, the flame is modeled on the Skokie Spirit stained-glass piece at Village Hall by Joe Felice (1978), installed to commemorate the community coming together to oppose a hostile neo‑Nazi march. Second, he said the flame honors the Potawatomi, early inhabitants of the area who are described in the remarks as "keepers of the fire," and ties the design to local indigenous place names. Third, Boehm called the flame a beacon that signals Skokie’s welcome to newcomers and reflects the village’s diversity.
The official thanked the members of the flags review panel and village staff who helped guide the selection, and acknowledged input from the North American Vexillological Association. Boehm thanked the review panel, his wife Chelsea and the community, saying a flag is meaningful only with the people beneath it.
The ceremony closed with the flag hoisted at Village Hall. Officials said the flag and the selection process were intended to reflect Skokie’s history and values and to serve as a visible symbol of community unity moving forward.
