Memorial Day

More than 1.1 million men and women have died in wartime throughout the span of our nation’s history. This number should truly humble us, as they represent people—individuals—who were brothers, husbands, mothers, sisters, friends. These were people woven into the fabric of communities across the nation. They were loved. They were mourned. And they were missed.

You watch them disappear out of your line of sight, knowing it may very well be the last time you will see them. Hug them. Tell them you love them. But this has been a stark reality for many families in this country. So, too, have been the telegrams, the middle-of-the-night phone calls and the officer or chaplain standing at the front door of the next of kin to tell them their loved one has been killed.

It is all too easy for those who have never suffered such losses to see past the holes that were left in the families and communities. That’s simply human nature. As Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy forget in time that men have died to win them.”
But Memorial Day is a chance to reconnect to the genesis of our nation’s innumerous freedoms. It is an important day on which we ground ourselves to the reality that every Gold Star Family knows: Our way of life has been shaped and made possible by those who have served—and by those who were lost.

“You know, a parent always realizes that some of them are not going to come back.” This is the reality of military service, and this is what we take to heart on Memorial Day: We are able to be here today largely thanks to those who are not.
With friends, neighbors, veterans’ groups and entire communities, we can ensure that the sacrifices made by our nation’s finest and bravest never go unappreciated and that their memories are never forgotten, on Memorial Day and throughout the year.

In Flanders Fields
By a Canadian during World War I

John McCrae - 1872-1918

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Remember and honor those who have given the last full measure of devotion...

It's not just for the ones who have died in wartime but all service members who have given their life in service to this country. Training for war is a dangerous business.

Ryan - Very true. To honor ALL who have served and have passed. Thank you for your service and sacrifice.