How Will You Observe Memorial Day?

Memorial Day, May 28th,  is still a couple of weeks away. Many Americans celebrate this day as the beginning of summer and a time to get together with family and friends and fire up the grill. I look forward to this cookout as some of my favorite foods will be served.


But, I was thinking about Memorial Day yesterday and what the day is really about. As I sat at my desk, I recalled a documentary project I completed a few years ago called Veteran Voices in which I photographed Word War II veterans and recorded some of their oral histories. I grew up listening to my father's WWII experiences in New Guinea and the Philippines (actually, he didn't talk about it much, I was more absorbed in his artifacts he brought back home and kept in a trunk in our basement) and wanted to recognize the sacrifices and experiences of World War II veterans.


As I recalled that project, I wondered how many of those veterans were still around. I knew of personal losses: my father, two uncles, my former next-door-neighbor, but how many other WWII veterans from the project had died. I began some research and immediately found 4 others who had passed away. I remembered their stories: Pearl Harbor, Iwo Jima, Guadalcanal. Stories like those told by Evelyn "Mickey" Gilberg, a VBOB (Veteran of the Battle of the Bulge). Her stories were funny, poignant and emotional.


During World War II, there were a little over 16 million total US service members. It's rather sobering to realize that by 2015, it is projected that there will be only 855,000 living US World War II veterans. Let's take some time this Memorial Day to remember all veterans who have served and are serving our country. As many of the World War II veterans told me, the heroes are the ones who didn't come back.


Each day, between now and Memorial Day, I will try to share the photos and names of the World War II veterans from Veteran Voices.


How will you observe Memorial Day?


Photo: Don Dusenbery, US Army, Veteran Voices