Since the United States was founded 250 years ago, men and women have given their lives for our freedom. Memorial Day is the day we gather to remember the great debt we owe the men and women who gave their lives in defense of this great nation.
Memorial Day has its roots in Mississippi along with other places across the United States. In 1866, four women took flowers to Friendship Cemetery in Columbus, Mississippi. They decorated the graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers who had fallen in the Battle of Shiloh. This small act grew into an entire day dedicated to memorializing those who have died in the fight for freedom from the American War for Independence to the modern-day War on Terrorism.
On May 5, 1868, Major General John A. Logan issued General Orders No. 11 or the “Memorial Day Act.” This Act formally established Memorial Day and called on the nation to place flowers on the graves of those who had given the ultimate sacrifice. Originally called Decoration Day, Memorial Day has been a part of the American tradition since the end of the Civil War.
READ MORE: Guest introduces congressional resolution honoring Memorial Day
This year for the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the founding of America, we are once again reminded of over 1.01 million Americans lives lost on the field of battle since the birth of our nation.
As President Gerald Ford reminded us on our 200th anniversary in 1976, “[We] must reflect upon the sacrifices made by those continually brave Americans who lie in rest on [our] hillsides as beneath silent markers at Valley Forge, Gettysburg, and Pearl Harbor. Their courage won a revolution. Their bravery preserved our Republic. Their perseverance kept the peace and ensured a heritage of freedom.”
In my time in Congress, I have worked to recognize and honor the sacrifice of our brave warriors and have proudly introduced a resolution in honor of Memorial Day. The resolution expresses that the House of Representatives “calls on the people of the United States to observe Memorial Day as a special day of remembrance to honor the men and women of the United States who died in the pursuit of freedom and peace. We can never repay the debt we owe the men and women who gave their lives for our great nation, but we can remain committed to the values they fought and died for – values such as hard-work, determination, and truth. We must always remember that we are blessed to be citizens of this great republic, to live in a nation that was divinely inspired, and to call this land our home.”
Thank you for joining me and your fellow Americans in remembering our nation’s heroes, who paid the ultimate sacrifice, and who gave their lives that our nation might endure.
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