We didn't lower the flag?

I drove to the club this morning and found we had two longtime members who passed, I looked at the American Flag and it was at top mast.  There is a Queen City burgee on the right yardarm with some black around the edge and a piece of dangling black something on the end. I did inquire and found we are not going to follow tradition anymore and lower the flag for our departed members.  This causes me much distress. For my 23 years at the club, and I'm sure much longer,  we have had a tradition to drop the American Flag to half mast to acknowledge the passing of a member.  Now, for some reason, we have decided to abandon tradition, why?  Who is going to tell the family members of Captain's Benoit (#132) and Frey (#31) we dropped the flag for everymember before you but were not going to do it for you?  Today is a day of morning requested by the the President and Governer in reaction to the shooting of the folks in Arizona. They have asked all flags to be at half mast. we didn't even drop it for them.