In honor of Memorial Day, Americans across the country remembered our fallen heroes by paying their respects and giving tributes to our nation’s bravest who sacrificed their lives for freedom. From placing American flags on the graves of our lost soldiers to holding parades in their honor, Americans came together this weekend to show their appreciation.
At national cemeteries, the Boy Scouts of America and other volunteers placed American flags for those who died serving our country. According to The Tennessean, more than 2,000 volunteers placed more than 100,000 flags at over 50 cemeteries in their region. Andrew Weisbrot, the Boy Scouts of America district executive of Blesdoe Creek, and the chairman of this year’s Memorial Day flag placement, shared with The Tennessean that this annual event remembering our fallen heroes is also about community. He stated that “it’s a good program to show our youth to become those leaders of tomorrow, and this is one way to instill it… (by) giving back to the community, volunteering a Saturday of your time to make an enormous difference.” The Boy Scouts and volunteers will return on Tuesday to remove the flags.
Across the country in San Diego, both Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts honored our brave soldiers who gave their lives defending our country. The volunteers placed American flags on more than 66,000 graves in Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in Point Loma. According to CBS 8, one of the volunteers, Steve Warren, shared that “even though Memorial Day is a time to celebrate the freedom we have in America, we should never forget that that very freedom came at the expense of the brave heroes who lost their lives fighting to protect it.”
In Southern Florida, communities came together to remember our heroes who sacrificed all for our freedom by holding parades with touching tributes. According to WSVN, the tributes are personal for those participating in and attending the parade who lost loved ones killed in action such as the family of Sgt. LeDavid Johnson who died while serving our country in 2017.
With the memory of our fallen heroes being honored with the highest respects, Memorial Day presents an opportunity to teach future generations about the importance of taking time to remember those who gave their lives for our freedom. Placing the symbol of freedom on each grave of a soldier who died defending our country serves as a reminder and a show of respect to our nation’s heroes who will never be forgotten for the ultimate sacrifice they made for freedom.