The Civil War, which ended in the spring of 1865, claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history and required the establishment of the country’s first national cemeteries.
By the late 1860s, Americans in various towns and cities had begun holding springtime tributes to these countless fallen soldiers, decorating their graves with flowers and reciting prayers.
It is unclear where exactly this tradition originated; numerous different communities may have independently initiated the memorial gatherings. And some records show that one of the earliest Memorial Day commemoration was organized by a group of freed slaves in Charleston, South Carolina less than a month after the Confederacy surrendered in 1865. Nevertheless, in 1966 the federal government declared Waterloo, New York, the official birthplace of Memorial Day.
Originally Posted by ChiTown:
To my Father, who was an Army Aircorp/Air Force veteran of WWII (1939-1945) in the European theatre and passed at the age of 81 in 2002. He was my hero, and still is to this day. A short man in stature, but a giant of a human being and Father. Thanks for your service and for being an amazing role model. Love you and RIP, Dad
that label of the greatest generation is spot on about your Dad and all the sacrifices they made to ensure that the whole world and future generations didn’t live under Nazi ideology. :-) [Reply]
Originally Posted by Marcellus:
RIP Andy Alaniz and Marty Davis, served with both in the first Gulf War.
Andy
One of the most iconic pictures from Desert Storm, Andy is in the body bag.
Marty is on the left, he was from Salina KS, we went from MEPS all the way through BASIC and a few other schools together all the way to Ft Stewart GA. On the right is Corey Winkle who I didn't know. They were killed the same day.
RIP.
Thanks for sharing who these brave men were. :-) [Reply]
Originally Posted by Marcellus:
RIP Andy Alaniz and Marty Davis, served with both in the first Gulf War.
Andy
One of the most iconic pictures from Desert Storm, Andy is in the body bag.
Marty is on the left, he was from Salina KS, we went from MEPS all the way through BASIC and a few other schools together all the way to Ft Stewart GA. On the right is Corey Winkle who I didn't know. They were killed the same day.
RIP.
That chopper photo is one hell of a photo! RIP! [Reply]
My dad served in the Army during WWII. He never told too many stories, but had one in particular where he showed up one of his superiors. It's a great memory but it's literally about the only thing I know about his time during the war.
Originally Posted by seclark:
I think the guys that don’t want to talk have seen the worst
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I can confirm this. I’ve had PM’s, Reps, emails, messages on Facebook about them not wanting to post but appreciate the thread.
Just counted them, 12 in all. Which tells me there is a lot of leftover pain from their service. We can’t fix that obviously.
But, we can remind them that we as individual citizens, appreciate their service to the country and to keep us safe. Most have told me over the years that it does make a difference. Like the packages, it was never about Jerky, candy etc. it’s was about John doe citizens recognizing their service. That made a difference. [Reply]
