Memorial day is a day of honoring men and women who had died in service, risking their lives for this country. While Memorial Day brings us no school/work, barbeques, and many sales, it is a day of remembrance and commemoration to those who risked their lives in the military.

 It’s important to celebrate Memorial day because as a society we need to recollect and acknowledge why we have a sense of security and safety. For that safety, we can thank those in the military. 

  A brief history behind Memorial Day: this holiday was started years after the Civil War, in honor of those who died in the fight between the union and the Confederates, but it was an official holiday in 1971. The holiday was originally known as Decoration Day and it switched to, what we know as, Memorial Day because this holiday was not just commemorating those who had died in the Civil War, but all the men and women who had sacrificed their lives over the years.

 In 1968, congress passed a law permitting Memorial Day to fall on the last Monday of May in order to create a three-day weekend for federal employees. At Danbury High School, we have teachers who have served in a branch of the army. Veterans, like Jack Malone, help us get a better understanding of the importance of Memorial Day. 

 Malone served in the Air Force and he was a Chief Master Sergeant.  Malone says  “we celebrate memorial day to honor those men and women who have died serving their country. a very small percentage of Americans actually serve their country, 1% of the united state population will serve and in defense of their country. So there is a lot of sacrifices that veterans make, while they are serving.” 

As a society, we should come forward and give our attention to those soldiers who have fallen in combat. 

“We retired from the air force so we spent lots of time overseas and areas that may not be the nicest or safest.  But if you look at all the freedom that we have and the things that we can do that is because of generations before us who have made sacrifices and some the ultimate sacrifice in dying for their country, so it’s very important for us to honor the men and women who have died and that what memorial day” says Malone. 

One way you can honor fellow men and women, who risk their lives every day, is by commemorating those who have passed on. You can commemorate it by visiting a family member or someone in your community who has died in service and bringing flowers or a flag in honor of their service. 

Another way you can commemorate is by taking a moment of silence. Take a moment of silence at 3. pm for the national moment of remembrance. The national movement of remembrance is an annual event, on a memorial day, where Americans take time, no matter where they are, to take a moment of silence at 3 pm. 

Another thing you can do in order to commemorate veterans takes a moment, out of the weekend, to volunteer at your local community shelter or help out your fellow community member who had lost some in service. So I leave you with this question, what are you doing for your community, in order to better those men and women who sacrificed their lives for your country?