God Bless our Troops – Yesterday and Today

Members of the 3rd Infantry Regiment (Old Guard) take part in “Flags-in”, where they will place a flag at each of the 284,000 headstones at Arlington National Cemetery ahead of Memorial Day in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., May 25, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

If you are anything like me today will cause goose-bumps on your arms as you witness a Memorial Day Parade in person or some type of celebration on television to honor those who have served our country.

I never was fortunate to serve and as I get older I regret it more and more.  The liberties that we have in this country should never be taken for granted and we must stop and reflect on those who have given the ultimate sacrifice, or were willing to do so,  so we can have the freedoms that we have today.

My mother – God Bless her – graduated in June 1944 – only days after the D-Day invasion of World War II.  She always told us of the patriotism of those days.  In her small graduating class in rural Minnesota the young men graduated from high school on Saturday night and every one of them enlisted on Monday morning.  They felt “called” to duty — many never came home and rest eternally in cemeteries in Europe or the Pacific.

As a funeral director I’ve been privileged to serve not only a handful of  active duty soldiers who fell, but hundreds of honorably discharged veterans as well.  Our national cemetery is Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Bloomington, Minnesota.  I’ve never gotten tired of escorting a deceased veteran there for final interment and military honors by their comrades.

Tradition is another thing that makes America great.  One of the oldest traditions in the Memorial Day holiday took place last Thursday at Arlington National Cemetery, just outside Washington, DC.  That is the “Flags In” ceremony conducted by all available soldiers of America’s Old Guard, the 3rd Infantry Regiment.  Every year since 1948 this group takes time to place a flag at every grave in the hallowed National Cemetery.  This year it is estimated that they placed 284,000 flags in remembrance of those who had died. . . so that we may live.

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