Vic Longley, who lives near Ashhurst, with his family crest flag. Photo / Judith Lacy
Vic Longley, who lives near Ashhurst, with his family crest flag. Photo / Judith Lacy
What started as buying a few flags for his children's fort has turned into an impressive collection for Vic Longley.
The retired insurance broker has about 130 flags.
It was about 35 years ago when the family lived in Roslyn the Longley children wanted a flagpole for their fort, soVic bought some small flags.
When Longley and his wife Eileen moved to their current property near Ashhurst about 20 years ago, they brought with them about 25 flags.
Longley has two flagpoles and always flies the New Zealand flag from the one on the right-hand side of his house. The family crest flag was flying on the other pole the day the Guardian visited.
Longley says he is hard to buy for and people started to give him flags (or Turkish delight) as presents.
Part of Vic Longley's flag list for May. Photo / Judith Lacy
He has an alphabetical list of all his flags, plus a handwritten sheet for each month listing which flag should be flown on which day and why.
When the lay preacher in the Methodist church was asked to supply country flags for an international-day celebration, he was able to provide 23 of the 26 flags requested.
