Memorial Day

While many Americans will celebrate Memorial Day with hot dogs, hamburgers and a day off... let us not forget what this day is really all about.  Memorial Day is not about 20% off sales and lounging by the pool.  Memorial Day is a day of honor and respect for our fallen... and sometimes forgotten.  

Photo source

Photo source

From the US Memorial Day website, Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of the United States of America. Over two dozen cities and towns claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day. While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it’s difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day.

Regardless of the exact date or location of its origins, one thing is clear – Memorial Day was borne out of the Civil War and a desire to honor our dead. It was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11. “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land,” he proclaimed. The date of Decoration Day, as he called it, was chosen because it wasn’t the anniversary of any particular battle.

On the first Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, and 5,000 participants decorated the graves of the 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried there.  




I encourage all Pack 1910 families to engage in something meaningful this weekend to help instill in our Cubs a purpose for this day.  Let's raise a generation that doesn't forget.  Maybe you will be inspired to work on the Citizenship beltloop or pin.  Why not join the Virtual Boots On The Ground.  Let your children create a virtual avatar and join with others across the country for in the National Memorial Day Parade.  They will have a live feed on the site this day.  The parade is at 2pm EST.  More on the parade can be found here.

If you would like to do something local, at 11am CST at the Mt. Gilead Cemetery on Keller-Smithfield Road, the Keller Mt. Gilead Cemetery Association and the Rotary club are putting together the 5th annual memorial day celebration.  This is a one hour event inclusive of a flag retirement ceremony (usually conducted by Troop 1910 of First United Methodist Church of Keller.)  Bring your own chairs.

We have added to our Pack Calendar a special entry on Memorial Day.  At 3pm -- no matter where you are, what you are doing or whose company you are sharing -- please stop and take a moment to gather your family and friends together to remember those who have fallen in service to our great nation.  Memorial Day is more than a cookout, it's a time to be in thought for those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice as well as their families.  The National Moment of Remembrance is at 3pm.  Unite with Americans everywhere to show that we have not forgotten that freedom isn't free.  We are the home of the free BECAUSE of the brave!  

Here is a Memorial Day Tribute you could watch with your family.