Remember why we have a three-day weekend

Published 12:00 am Saturday, May 25, 2024

It’s easy for many people to forget why we are enjoying this three-day weekend.

Memorial Day weekend is the kickoff to summer, and with the last day of school on Tuesday – at least here in Quincy – it’s easy for us to unwind.

When the weather is great, nothing beats getting together with friends and family and enjoying each other’s company. Light up the grill or the smoker for burgers, brats, pulled pork and more.

But we also need to take a moment. If you can, step outside at 3 p.m. and listen. Maybe you will hear taps.

It’s not unusual to hear taps on Memorial Day with the various observances across the region, but you may hear it in your neighborhood.

A new movement has started in the U.S. and continues to grow.

Since 2020, Taps Across America asks buglers or any musician to sound the 24 notes at 3 p.m. local time, which coincides with the National Day of Remembrance.

You might be familiar with Taps Across America. Steve Hartman with CBS featured Taps across America several times in his “On the Road with Steve Hartman” segment.

The reason is simple. Pay a silent tribute to the men and women who have served in uniform and to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

It’s what Memorial Day is about.

Originally called Decoration Day, Memorial Day is a federal holiday to mourn and honor deceased men and women who served.

Though commemorations were held throughout the country since the 1800s, it wasn’t until 1968 when the Uniform Monday Holiday Act officially designated the last Monday in May as Memorial Day effective 1971.

It was further expanded in December 2000 when the National Moment of Remembrance Act established the White House Commission on the National Moment of Remembrance, which said U.S. citizens should give “back to their country, which provides them so much freedom and opportunity” through Memorial Day activities.

The commission also endorsed the National Moment of Remembrance at 3 p.m. local time.

It isn’t hard to pay tribute.

You can attend a Memorial Day service, like many who attended Friday’s program at the Illinois Veterans Home.

You might have volunteered to help the American Legion Post 37 place flags at each headstone in Sunset Cemetery – a tall task if not for the small army of volunteers.

You can visit Sunset Cemetery, Quincy National Cemetery, Woodland Cemetery or any other cemetery in the area and pay tribute to those who served.

In Quincy, you can pay tribute to six recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor – Lester Hammond Jr., John O’Dea, William G. Taylor and George Gates at Sunset Cemetery; Martin Jones Hawkins at Woodland Cemetery and Hermann Emil Fichter at St. Boniface Cemetery.

No matter how busy you are this weekend, at 3 p.m. Monday, take a minute to remember those who gave the last full measure of devotion.