lenses

Raising on the roof

“Sky Warrior” William McKenna of the Facilities staff puts up and takes down flags on the towers of Bryn Mawr dorms and Thomas, and on the roof of Canaday, at least eight times a year for events such as semester openings, Parents' Weekend, Prospectives' Weekend, May Day, Graduation, and Reunion. McKenna started handling the flags in 1983 as a 21-year-old building-climbing rookie. Restringing the flagpoles requires balance, strength and confidence; some of the towers are accessible only by long ladders. The sixteen heraldic flags, which were newly made this year, replace similar flags made in the early 1980s. Colorful and attractive designs were selected from illustrated books of heraldry, especially if they had some Bryn Mawr connection (for example, the arms of a Duke of Pembroke for Pembroke Hall).