Hard to believe, but Memorial Day is already (almost) here. Time really does fly. While Memorial Day travel plans and BBQs are on many peoples’ minds (nothing wrong with that), I thought it would be nice to write about other ways of commemorating the day.

Last year I mentioned that my family and I would be spending some time at a local National Cemetery placing flags on fallen solders’ gravesites. We will again be doing that. But there are other things that people can do to recognize the day, too.

According to military.com,

  • Take some goodies to a nearby Veteran’s hospital.
  • Go to a Memorial Day parade. Visit a search engine like google.com and search for “Memorial Day events near me.
  • Watch a movie and learn some history about famous battles of the past. Check out The History Channel and The Military Channel for some good movies/documentaries.
  • Create a card or picture or a care package to be sent overseas to a soldier currently serving our country.

To put the day into better perspective, here are some Memorial Day facts, from wallethub.com:

  • 45+ million: The number of veterans who’ve served the country in war time
  • 35+ million: Members of the armed services have lost their lives in conflict
  • 260,000: Graves at Arlington National Cemetery that are adorned with American flags each Memorial Day
  • 102: The number of members of the 115th Congress who have served in the U.S. military
  • 3:00 p.m.: The National Moment of Remembrance, as designated by Congress in 2000
  • New York: The first state to officially recognize Memorial Day, in 1873
  • 25: The number of cities who claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day

Reminder: In commemoration of Memorial Day, the Panel Support Center will be closed on Monday, May 28. The PSC will reopen on Tuesday, May 29, at 9 a.m. ET.

I hope you enjoy your long weekend.