The annual Hillsborough Memorial Day parade has a reliably small town feel that mixes civic pride with the sentiment of the day. This year was pretty much just like last year described here. The vintage cars, police cars (including the Atherton Mustang), fire trucks, vintage Recology truck, etc. were out in force in the sunshine. We had the full complement of politicians looking a bit sheepish sitting on the backs of convertibles--Mullin, Becker, Papan, and Pine. The vets in uniform looked much more at ease as they were driven along.
Here is a bit of history of the day from the History Channel
On May 5, 1868, General John A. Logan, leader of an organization for Northern Civil War veterans, called for a nationwide day of remembrance later that month. “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land,” he proclaimed.
The date of Decoration Day, as he called it, was chosen because it wasn’t the anniversary of any particular battle.
On the first Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, and 5,000 participants decorated the graves of the 20,000 Civil War soldiers buried there.
I highlighted the BHS marching band in last year's post, so here is a shout out to the Bearcat band.
We hosted a Memorial Day luncheon at our home. As the guests arrived and settled in my wife would note that a "critical mass" had been attained and that I should make a toast. So twice we thanked our fallen combatants for their sacrifice to keep us free, protect our Constitution and preserve not only our way of life but our very lives.
Later during the luncheon a neighbor told me two stories that illustrate how much France remembers the sacrifice of the Allies in the European Theater.
He was visiting the five beaches at Normandy. He noticed many school buses at the graveyard memorials. He asked about the school buses and was told that yearly the students are taken to honor the fallen who liberated Europe from Nazi Germany.
Do our school children get a chance to go with their teachers to the National Cemetery in San Bruno?
The other story concerned a harried French waitress serving a table of rowdy American young folks. Her boss said that she didn't have to serve those brats. She said "I will, because I do it for their parents."
Posted by: Peter Garrison | May 28, 2024 at 06:27 PM
When in England at a fairly large conference, Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury if our plans for Iraq were just an example of empire building by George Bush.
He answered by saying that, "Over the years, the United States has sent many of its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for freedom beyond our borders. The only amount of land we have ever asked for in return is enough to bury those that did not return."
It became very quiet in the room. You could have heard a pin drop.
Posted by: Paloma Ave | May 28, 2024 at 08:40 PM
Biden fell asleep during a Memorial Day ceremony this year.
Posted by: Robert De Sneero | May 29, 2024 at 11:28 AM