Many ways to honor fallen heroes today

Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those who gave it all to secure the freedoms we enjoy today. Sacrifice is meaningless without honoring those who gave so much, and here in this veteran-friendly area of North Idaho and the Inland Empire, we honor our fallen with ceremonies at local cemeteries, as well as those regionally and nationally.

This day has special significance to those who have seen the elephant of combat. Faces of our fallen comrades are constant in our memory. Ceremonies bring out poignant memories of the day they died in the tangle of the jungle, the desolate desert, the high seas, or in the air. Our battle buddies died serving honorably and with conviction of duty. At home, the news of their demise to families is devastating, leaving them to wonder why it was their loved one who died in battle. Their lives have changed forever, and that day offers a promise that their loved one will be remembered.

Veterans are buried in local cemeteries where we can visit their graves and cherish their memory. Others lie interned in one of 135 national cemeteries in 40 states. The Department of Veterans Affairs’ National Cemetery Administration is responsible for marking the graves of veterans and dependents buried in national and state veterans cemeteries, as well as the graves of veterans in private cemeteries. The National Park Service maintains 14 cemeteries associated with historic sites and battlefields.

The Department of the Army controls Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., in whose 624 acres is the final resting place for more than 400,000 active duty service members, veterans, and their families. The rich history of military honors makes the service so special for families who come from across the country to bury their loved ones.

Arlington National Cemetery is described on its homepage as “our nation’s most hallowed ground” and says that “this historic cemetery bears witness to our American heritage and the military service and sacrifice of men and women in uniform throughout our nation’s history, and we believe that caring for our nation’s heroes and their families during their time of need is a sacred duty entrusted to us. Our nation’s veterans are laid to rest with dignity and honor at Arlington National Cemetery by a compassionate and dedicated work force.”

Worldwide, American Battle Monuments Commission administers, operates, and maintains 24 permanent American burial grounds on foreign soil, as well as 25 memorials, monuments, and markers to honor and remember our fallen. Established in 1923, ABMC commemorates the service, achievements, and sacrifice of U.S. armed forces. Cemeteries are located in 10 different countries throughout Europe, North Africa, Mexico, Latin America, and the Philippines. Nearly all the cemeteries and memorials specifically honor those who served in World War I or World War II.

In his Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) said, “... from those honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion; that we highly resolve that these dead shall not have fallen in vain.”

To that end, Memorial Day was born.

Originally called “Decoration Day,” the holiday came to being when women from Savannah, Ga., decorated Confederate soldiers’ graves in 1861 in Warrington, Va. However, the village of Boalsburg, Pa., claims to be the birthplace of the original Memorial Day on July 4, 1864, when graves of soldiers were decorated by ladies in the village. It was a devastating time for both North and South during the Civil War (1861-1865). Decoration Day gradually became known as Memorial Day and the name was first used in 1882. The Uniform Monday Holiday Act passed in Congress in 1968 moved four holidays, including Memorial Day from their traditional dates to a specified Monday in order to create a “convenient” three-day weekend. The change moved Memorial Day, from its May 30 date to the last Monday in May.

Ceremonies at military bases offer the 21-gun salute by cannon fire. VFW and American Legion rifle squads fire a salute at our local cemeteries, followed by the somber playing of TAPS by a lone bugler. This rich tradition honors our fallen as we salute, with honor and pride, those who died in war, remembering their courageous and honorable deeds.

Jack Evensizer is a veteran and a resident of Dalton Gardens. He attended eight of 10 services for his battle buddies in Iraq.