Modern observances of Memorial Day often conflict with the tradition of the occasion. While it typically is a call for barbecues and parades and the unofficial start of summer, the day remains perhaps the most somber of American holidays.
Memorial Day is set aside as a time to recognize those who have died while in military service to the United States. That provides an important distinction from Veterans Day, which is observed each Nov. 11 in honor of all who have served in the armed forces.
It is the fallen we acknowledge today, recognizing the sacrifice they made while serving their country. Their deaths remind us that freedom is not free; it often comes at a terrible cost, and it warrants a moment of reflection upon the fact that we are here because they are not. As former Washington Congressman Doc Hastings once said, “Memorial Day remains one of America’s most cherished patriotic observances. The spirit of this day has not changed. It remains a day to honor those who died defending our freedom and democracy.”
While honoring war dead is an ancient custom, in this nation it took hold following the Civil War. After some 360,000 Union soldiers died while preserving the nation, along with about 260,000 Confederates, it became tradition to decorate their graves. That tradition grew in both the North and the South, with the name of the occasion gradually morphing from Decoration Day to Memorial Day. While many cities lay claim as the birthplace of the observance, in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson officially declared Waterloo, N.Y., as home of the original Memorial Day festivities.
This year’s memorials will include an extra bit of history, as 2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. Known at the time as The Great War, the conflict on European soil saw the death of about 116,000 Americans and saw the ascension of the United States as a world power. In bringing an end to a war that had slogged for years at a stalemate, the triumph by American forces marked the beginning of The American Century.
When the world required U.S. intervention in World War II a generation later, some 400,000 Americans were killed while saving the planet from despots and tyrants. The local cost is difficult to quantify, but according to the National Archives, 120 Clark County residents serving in the Army were killed during World War II, ranging alphabetically from Francis B. Abrahamson to Floyd R. Zawistoski.
Since then, there have been conflicts in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq — each of them requiring American forces to defend our nation’s interests and each of them resulting in casualties that call for remembrances today. As journalist Elmer Davis is credited with saying: “This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave.”
In honor of that bravery, several local ceremonies will take place today. The Community Military Appreciation Committee will lead a commemoration from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site.
Whether citizens attend a formal remembrance or visit a military cemetery or acknowledge Memorial Day in a private fashion, it is important to recall the reason for the holiday and to remember the role our war dead have played in the formation of this nation. And it is important to recognize the solemnity of the occasion amid the barbecues and parades.
