Memorial Day - Decoration Day

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Memorial Day and the Buddy Poppy

Do you know the real meaning of the American Memorial Day holiday? Do you know why we see poppies for sale and on lapels during Memorial Day, Veterans Day or Remembrance Day?

Memorial Day is not simply a day to "kick off" the summer season. It's much more than a reason to clean up the BBQ or have a picnic at the lake. Memorial Day is a solemn holiday with roots that extend back to the Civil War, a day when the US pays respect to all fallen troops from all military conflicts. We place flags on the graves of veterans, and the President lays a commemorative wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns.

Parades on Memorial Day are generally low key processions of military groups, veterans groups, scouts and service organizations. They march to each cemetery and military shrine in a community, fire off salutes in honor of the dead, and place flags at grave sites. This is, for me, the true meaning of Memorial Day.

When I was a child our family observed Decoration Day (Memorial Day) as a solemn holiday. My grandmother was a proud Blue Star Mother during WWII. She was a nurse and an activist in Boston area military family organizations. Her sons - my uncles and my father - all served their country during World War II in various branches of the military. My dad was the youngest son, and served in the US Navy aboard the USS Lexington.

Every May we wore small paper poppies on our lapels in honor of veterans who had died in any war. These Buddy Poppies are still made today and given away around Memorial Day. The donations received for Buddy Poppies go directly to support disabled veterans and the families of fallen veterans.

Our family participated in some way each year - we attended the parades and listened as the bugler played taps at the cemetery. As kids we cringed at the 21-gun salutes, then scrambled to gather the shell casings after the color guard departed and the parade moved on to the next ceremonial site. And finally, when all the reverence was completed, we returned home to gather as a family, post our flag proudly, and share a meal together in remembrance of those who died protecting our freedom.

Marine bugler photo - courtesy Arlington National Cemetery collection

For the Fallen - Taps

My brother is a retired Marine; Dad was a WWII Navy vet

Taps never fails to give me chills. I think about how many have sacrificed for me every time I hear it played. Our family was fortunate to not suffer a loss to wartime conflict, but I remember worrying that my husband would be drafted into service during the Vietnam War. Many of my classmates served in Vietnam; some died and others came back home changed forever. When I visited my brother at Parris Island shortly after his retirement from USMC, we attended the sunset flag-lowering on base. It was an impressive ceremony.
Military Taps
by warcheifoflegion | video info

3,294 ratings | 1,044,155 views
curated content from YouTube

The True Meaning of Memorial Day

Formerly Known as Decoration Day, A Solemn Observance

Memorial Day is a US holiday of reverence and respect for those who served the nation in military service. The holiday was formerly known as Decoration Day, and observed on May 30th every year. The first large observance of Decoration Day took place in 1868 at Arlington National Cemetery.

Several towns in both the North and South claim to have held the first Memorial Day. Some southern states observe a Confederate Memorial Day on a different date.

The original name for the holiday - Decoration Day - came from the practice of decorating the graves of soldiers who died during battles of the Civil War. The observance later expanded to commemorate fallen soldiers from all past or current conflicts, and then later still to include all US service veterans.

Photo Credit: wikimedia, public domain contribution by Remember

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Memorial Day Ceremonies, Parades

Memorial Day is a day marked by solemn military and government observances and local parades through the nation; many families also observe the day as one of personal tribute and reflection by decorating the graves of family members, both veterans and non-veterans. In recent years commercial enterprises have promoted the holiday as a 3-day kickoff to summer and family activities. As a result, the true meaning and history has grown slightly obscured in times of peace.

Each Memorial Day the president or vice president visits Arlington National Cemetery and lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. Military honor guards fire their rifles in salute, speakers help the public remember the real meaning for Memorial Day, and parades featuring representatives of the armed forces, veterans organizations and veterans take place in communities large and small. Flags on public buildings fly at half staff until noon, then raise to the top of the flagpole for the rest of the day.

Most communities conduct cemetery ceremonies and place flags and/or flowers on the graves of veterans and hold public assemblies to honor local veterans who served in all campaigns and service branches. Taps played by a lone bugler, rifle shot salutes and placement of flags on graves or floral wreaths at monuments are all part of the day's observances. Following these solemn ceremonies, many communities sponsor picnics or other family gatherings to celebrate the memory of those honored earlier in the day.

Memorial Day Flags

Fly the Flag Proudly Every Day

On solemn holidays like Memorial Day, we fly the flag at half staff, or half mast.
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When IS Memorial Day?

What was once a fixed date every year is now another "Monday Off" holiday

Memorial Day art photo courtesy Scott AFB 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs office

Memorial Day is observed in the US on the third Monday in May.

The official date of celebration for Memorial Day changed in 1971 to the third Monday in May by an act of Congress, to establish a long weekend for the holiday observance. A few states in the US still observe May 30 as Memorial Day (New Hampshire is one state that still observes May 30 as a state Memorial Day holiday) in addition to the federal holiday; some southern states also observe a different day as a Confederate war dead holiday.

Other nations observe days of reverence and honor for their war and service veterans, including Australia, Canada and most European countries. Most nations, including the US, observe 11 November as Remembrance Day or Veterans Day.

Photo: Media Gallery, Scott AFB - www.scott.af.mil

Taps at Marines Memorial

3 Volley Salute and Taps at Marine Corps Memorial
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30 ratings | 22,150 views
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Poppies and Memorial Day

The poppy symbolizes fallen dead - The Buddy Poppy program supports veterans and families of fallen troops.

The red poppy is the traditional flower to honor and commemorate veterans in North America, Europe and Australia. The red poppy was made famous by a poem - In Flanders Fields - written during World War I by Canadian army surgeon Lt. Col. John McCrae.Because of the oem's popularity, the red poppy was adopted as the Remembrance Flower for war dead of Britain, France, the United States, Canada and other Commonwealth countries. On Memorial Day, many US veterans wear a red lapel poppy to honor their fallen soldier buddies.

Non-veterans also wear the Buddy Poppy to honor those who died protecting our freedom. Since 1924, disabled veterans - who receive compensation for their work - have assembled Buddy Poppies in hospitals and "Poppy shops."

The VFW and American Legion Auxiliary distribute the official Buddy Poppies freely to the public in time for Memorial Day ceremonies, accepting only contributions for the poppies. All contributions received in exchange for Buddy Poppies go directly to fund assistance programs for needy or disabled veterans and to the immediate family survivors of fallen veterans.

In Flanders Fields

The famous Memorial Day poem by John McCraw

When I was a child, we all learned this poem as part of our reading and penmanship classes during the month of May.

In Flanders Fields by John McCrae.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly.
Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields

Memorial Day Resource Links

Our recommended pages and articles about Memorial Day (Decoration Day)

Celebrate! Holidays In The U.S.A. - Memorial Day (Last Monday in May)
A USIA Publication Celebrate - Holidays in the United States of America.
is an introductory survey of the historical and social background of American holidays.
Memorial Day History US Embassy
The history and meaning of US Memorial Day
VFW Buddy Poppy Program
Among all the flowers that evoke the memories and emotions of war is the red poppy, which became associated with war after the publication of a poem written by Col. John McCrae of Canada. The poem, "In Flander's Field," describes blowing red fields among the battleground of the fallen.
Patriotic Printables
Free patriotic printables - banners, flags, posters, coloring pages, iron ons, stickers, clip art and free printable graphics of USA Patriotic, Canada Patriotic, Australia and Ireland flags, national symbols and patriotic emblems.
National Memorial Day Concert | PBS
On the eve of Memorial Day an annual tradition honors the bravery and sacrifice of America's service men and women with the top-rated, multi-award winning NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT broadcast live on PBS from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. Dedicated to all the Americans who have served or hav
Memorial Day - The History of Memorial Day
Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day because it was a time set aside to honor the nation's Civil War dead by decorating their graves. It was first widely observed on May 30, 1868, to commemorate the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers, by proclamation of General John A. Logan.
Guidelines for Display of the Flag - Public and Intergovernmental Affairs
Guidelines for Display of the US Flag
TAPS - the Story Behind the Bugler's "Lights Out" Call
24 Notes That Tap Deep Emotions by Jari A. Villanueva

Of all the military bugle calls, none is so easily recognized or more apt to render emotion than the call Taps. The melody is both eloquent and haunting and the history of its origin is interesting and somewhat clouded in controversy.
Memorial Day Images, Pictures, Memorial Day Photos, Pics, Memorial Day 2010 Images.
Memorial Day Images %uFFFD Online information on Memorial Day images, pics, memorial day 2010 images, pictures, memorial day photos, pic and more.

Fly Your Flag on Memorial Day!

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Memorial Day for Young Readers

Teach Your Children Well About the True Meaning of Memorial Day

This weekly reader non-fiction book teaches children the true meaning of the USA Memorial Day holiday.

Memorial Day (Our Country's Holidays)

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About the Author

Who is Pastiche?

I'm a Boston-born diehard New Englander with two grown daughters and three small grandchildren. I split my time between a home in Pennsylvania near my transplanted birth family and a second home in Vermont, close to my grandkids and only a few hours from where I lived my first 50 years on the planet.
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