DID YOU KNOW?

Memorial Day is Monday, May 30th! This is a day to remember our fallen soldiers, but many people also celebrate this day by remembering all their loved ones who have passed away. It’s said that Memorial Day is celebrated in late May because that’s when flowers are likely to be blooming all across the country. It was originally named “Decoration Day” to allow citizens to decorate the graves of deceased veterans with fresh flowers.

Participate!  The National Moment of Remembrance, established by Congress, asks Americans—wherever they are at 3pm on Memorial Day—to pause for one minute in an act of national unity.  The idea for the "Moment" was born when children were asked what Memorial Day means. They responded, "That's the day the pool opens." While Memorial Day weekend is fondly known as a kick start to Summer, it’s also important for us to remember the profound sacrifices made by our armed forces. In the year 2000, the White House Commission on Remembrance was established by Congress. The major initiative of this Commission was the National Moment of Remembrance. The 3 p.m. time was chosen because it is the time when most Americans are enjoying their freedoms on the national holiday. The Moment does not replace traditional Memorial Day events; rather it is an act of national unity in which all Americans, alone or with family and friends, honor those who died for our freedom. In this shared remembrance, Americans can connect and celebrate our country’s’ freedoms together.

Ask your client if they are a veteran, perhaps they’d like to watch the televised, National Memorial Day Concert on PBS (Sunday, May 29th at 8pm) while enjoying a simple, all-American hot dog dinner with all the trimmings!  No matter how you celebrate, remember how blessed we are as citizens to enjoy all the personal freedoms our armed forces fought and died for!

Holiday brain game idea: Write “M E M O R I A L   D A Y” in large letters on top of a blank sheet of paper and see how many words you can make out of the letters together. i.e.: memo, memory, more, dial, rile, mile, mild, dame, deem, demo, etc. How many can you come up with? There are over 200 possibilities, so the sky’s the limit!

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