Memorial Day is celebrated on the last Monday of May. Memorial Day 2010 will be celebrated on May 31st. We should all take time on this day to remember those who gave their lives; so we, as Americans could have life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Showing your appreciation with a red, white and blue floral tribute is a great way to remember those who gave their lives for us.

The following Memorial Day trivia, history and quotes will help you understand the essence of Memorial Day and Why we should honor those who served our country.

Memorial Day Trivia

• Memorial Day is a day of remembrance of those who have died serving our country.
• Memorial Day began as a commemoration for those soldiers who died during the Civil War.
• The south refused to honor the dead on Memorial Day until after World War I when the meaning of Memorial Day changed from honoring civil war dead to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war.
• General John Alexander Logan ordered the Memorial Day holiday to be observed by decorating the war dead.
• On Memorial Day, the flag should be at half-staff until noon only, then raised to the top of the staff.
• Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day.
• 1^st state to officially recognize Memorial Day was New York.
• Red Poppies are recognized as the Memorial Day flower.

Memorial Day History

• 1^st Memorial Day was May 30, 1968; celebrated by placing flowers on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers.
• 1915 Moina Michael began the custom of wearing red poppies on Memorial Day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war.
• 1950’s – the tradition of placing American flags on each of the 260,000+ gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery on the Thursday before Memorial Day by the 1200 soldiers of the 3^rd US Infantry began.
• May 1966 President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo New York as the birthplace of Memorial Day.
• 1971 – The National Holiday Act of 1971 changed Memorial Day from May 30^th to the last Monday in May.
• 2000 – National Moment of Remembrance Resolution passed. At 3pm on Memorial Day all American are asked to “voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a moment of remembrance & respect pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to taps.

• Perform, then, this one act of remembrance before this Day passes - Remember there is an army of defense and advance that never dies and never surrenders, but is increasingly recruited from the eternal sources of the American spirit and from the generations of American youth.  ~W.J. Cameron
• For love of country they accepted death...  ~James A. Garfield
• And they who for their country die shall fill an honored grave, for glory lights the soldier's tomb, and beauty weeps the brave.  ~Joseph Drake
• The patriot's blood is the seed of Freedom's tree.  ~Thomas Campbell
• Better than honor and glory, and History's iron pen,
  Was the thought of duty done and the love of his fellow men.
  ~Richard Watson Gilder
• These martyrs of patriotism gave their lives for an idea.  ~Schuyler Colfax
• We come, not to mourn our dead soldiers, but to praise them.  ~Francis A. Walker