The Ultimate Sacrifice

Sacrifice is the theme of Memorial Day. The sacrifice of individuals. The sacrifice of families. The sacrifice of communities. The sacrifice of a nation. Memorial Day is a time when America’s war heroes reminds us of the price for freedom. John Quincy Adams once said, “You will never know how much it has cost my generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you make good use of it.”

Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day. It is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of the United States of America. It is often said to be the ultimate sacrifice. Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966. Although,  it’s difficult to prove conclusively the origins of this day.

Memorial Day was borne out of the Civil War and a desire to honor the 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.

The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war).

Memorial Day is now observed in almost every state on the last Monday in May with Congressional passage of the National Holiday Act of 1971 (P.L. 90 – 363). Sadly, while there were many parades to honor our past heroes, few homes and businesses displayed the American Flag. Let’s hope patriotism is still alive and flourishing in our great country and take pause during the barbecues, beach-going, shopping and relaxation to remember those who have fallen for us so that we can have so much. May God bless them.