Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Pond Boss Memorial Day

This is the day that we pay homage to those who have served this great nation. I'm a Navy Vet....... To all of you who served, may I take a moment to thank you for your service to our country and I hope that many of you went to the cemeteries and placed flags for all of those who served with honor and are no longer with us. God bless each and every one of them.

Thank you Bob and all those that served.

We can never thank the men & women of our Armed Services enough.

Zep, that gives me chills bumps...
Not exactly the reception I got when I came back from VN in "69, but that's ok, too...

Yes rmedgar it's a great tribute.
And you guys that went to Nam deserved the same,
Thank you for your service.

Thank you all for your service to this country! It wouldn't be the same without you guys and gals protecting freedoms!

AMEN!

Thanks is not enough. Honor them!

Yes sir......that brought tears and chills to me too.

Thanks everybody that served. Did not see the tread clearly but we did remember at my household.

It is unfortunate that the distinction between Memorial Day and Veteran's Day has been lost.

YOU CAN SAY THAT AGAIN!

Today, let there be thanks to those who have fallen protecting our rights to be able to have and enjoy our ponds today (..and so much more!).

Bob, thank you for starting a great thread and great reminder!

As so many do in our busy lives, we can't take for granted the freedoms we have, how it became and remains to be, and those who sacrificed, many paying the ultimate price.

I was watching a program yesterday where the comment was made "no soldier comes back from war without wounds".

My thanks goes out to all, including the families, of those who selflessly gave and continue to give so much!

For us!

Keith

PS - Take the time to thank a service member, (and their family) every day! Never forget!

+1 Wouldn't it be great if all vets receive that type of recognition when they return home? Truly unfortunate they don't.

I read an article this morning of the Dutch people taking care of the cemetery of our Fallen men and women who fought in and along the German lines. The Dutch are still thankful for the freedom provided to them by Americans who fought and died there. The story made me feel good and sad at the same time.

Tracy

Memorial Day is a day of sadness and remembrance, for all the lives sacrificed for the freedom of our Great Nation. I remember when it was called Decoration Day, to put flowers on the graves of our fallen heroes.

Several of my high school graduation class of 1942 was just in time for replacements of casulaties of the Battle of the Bulge.
Every Memorial Day I honor and mourn the loss of life of Orville, my best friend, as well as Bull and Dickie. Lives were spared during all wars for reasons not understood, as well as all who celebrate this day.

Honor those on this day and celebrate this holiday in memory of those who gave their lives for our Freedom.

George1, I am sorry that you lost your friends. I am humbled and thankful that so many have fought and died for this wonderful country.


Cmm

I may not always support our leaders in the wars and policing actions they choose to engage us in, but I always support the troops. The ones actually putting their lives on the line. And feel a deep sense of respect for those fallen and prayers for their families.

I hope in this Country, Memorial day will never be forgotten nor criminalized like prayer in some schools. Enough said on that.

But I do hope that we all take the time to at least thank our family, friends and co-workers who serve and have served. Please ask a vet "What can I do" to memorialize those who gave all for our freedoms.
For all it's warts, USA is still the very best place on earth to be born into and live, directly because of the many sacrifices of those who serve and have served.
Freedom is not free.Pray for those who serve,they may fall and they still serve.

Ditto.

Why was it re-named to Memorial Day?

I can't find specific reason for renaming to Memorial day. Perhaps George can instill some history/memories upon this that seems to be forgotten (or ignored?).

Here is the best link I could find,
http://news.yahoo.com/memorial-day-7-historical-facts-holiday-143814167.html

All sources seem very vague as to why. Sure, they give a date as to when the day got moved. Perhaps they renamed it to make it clear that the new date(Memorial day) would not be confused with it's predecessor(Decoration day)which was a different date. Yet some sources seem to say that it was being called Memorial day before it was officially moved to now.

http://www.va.gov/opa/speceven/memday/history.asp

Memorial Day History
Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.
The first large observance was held that year at Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.
The ceremonies centered around the mourning-draped veranda of the Arlington mansion, once the home of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Various Washington officials, including Gen. and Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, presided over the ceremonies. After speeches, children from the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Orphan Home and members of the GAR made their way through the cemetery, strewing flowers on both Union and Confederate graves, reciting prayers and singing hymns.
Local Observances Claim To Be First Local springtime tributes to the Civil War dead already had been held in various places. One of the first occurred in Columbus, Miss., April 25, 1866, when a group of women visited a cemetery to decorate the graves of Confederate soldiers who had fallen in battle at Shiloh. Nearby were the graves of Union soldiers, neglected because they were the enemy. Disturbed at the sight of the bare graves, the women placed some of their flowers on those graves, as well.
Today, cities in the North and the South claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day in 1866. Both Macon and Columbus, Ga., claim the title, as well as Richmond, Va. The village of Boalsburg, Pa., claims it began there two years earlier. A stone in a Carbondale, Ill., cemetery carries the statement that the first Decoration Day ceremony took place there on April 29, 1866. Carbondale was the wartime home of Gen. Logan. Approximately 25 places have been named in connection with the origin of Memorial Day, many of them in the South where most of the war dead were buried.
Official Birthplace Declared In 1966, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., the “birthplace” of Memorial Day. There, a ceremony on May 5, 1866, honored local veterans who had fought in the Civil War. Businesses closed and residents flew flags at half-staff. Supporters of Waterloo’s claim say earlier observances in other places were either informal, not community-wide or one-time events.
By the end of the 19th century, Memorial Day ceremonies were being held on May 30 throughout the nation. State legislatures passed proclamations designating the day, and the Army and Navy adopted regulations for proper observance at their facilities.
It was not until after World War I, however, that the day was expanded to honor those who have died in all American wars. In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a national holiday by an act of Congress, though it is still often called Decoration Day. It was then also placed on the last Monday in May, as were some other federal holidays.

Thanks George!!!