Memorial Day honors the fallen

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DARKE COUNTY — Flags are flying, graves have been decorated and cemeteries will be filling up with people who will be honoring their loved ones this Memorial Day, both this weekend and next.

Color Guards will form, music will play, pastors and others will speak at the respective ceremonies and veterans’ organization will be on hand to enhance the meaning of the observance. People gather on the designated day and put flowers on graves and renew contacts with relatives and others.

In some areas, there will also be parades.

In downtown Greenville on Tuesday morning, individuals from PCS (Person Centered Services) installed flags on the poles on Broadway for the Memorial Day celebration. Ninety-seven flags were hung altogether, with 77 of them on Broadway and the rest at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7262 on North Ohio Street.

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for remembering the people who died while serving in the country’s armed forces. It originated as Decoration Day after the American Civil War in 1868, when the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of Union veterans founded in Decatur, Illinois, established it as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. By the 20th century, competing Union and Confederate holiday traditions, celebrated on different days, had merged, and Memorial Day eventually extended to honor all Americans who died while in the military service.

It was said that Memorial Day, or Decoration Day, typically marks the start of the summer vacation season, while Labor Day marks its end.

Memorial Day is not to be confused with Veterans Day, it was also noted. Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving, while Veterans Day celebrates the service of all U.S. military veterans.

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By Linda Moody

[email protected]

This writer may be reached at 937-569-4315. Follow her on Facebook and join the conversation and get updates on Facebook by searching Darke County Sports or Advocate 360. For more features online go to dailyadvocate.com.

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