Thanks to the Community Military Appreciation Committee and partners for the Vancouver Barracks Memorial Day ceremony. The posting of the colors, national anthem, wreath laying, rifle volley, artillery rounds, taps, and playing of “Amazing Grace” on bagpipes made a very dignified and moving event.
The focus of the day, however, was blurred. Numerous elected officials and retired generals were introduced as the guests of honor. Lengthy biographies of four of them dominated the printed program, and were read aloud before each of the four speeches. The many putative guests of honor shouldn’t have been the focus.
We were there to honor local service members who died for our country. If there were to be any honored guests, they should have been the Gold Star families present. But they were given only brief mention.
Next year, let’s ditch the multiple predictable speeches. As Abraham Lincoln would say, the brave men and women who gave their lives have consecrated the day far above their poor power to add anything. Let’s keep the focus of the day where it belongs: on the men and women who laid down their lives, and on the families they have left behind.
