Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it's difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day. It is more likely that it had many separate beginnings; each of those towns and every planned or spontaneous gathering of people to honor the war dead in the 1860's tapped into the general human need to honor our dead. It is not important who was the very first, what is important is that Memorial Day was established. Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all. Memorial Day was first observed on May 30, 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.
With the Memorial Day holiday upon us it got me thinking now would be a good time to honor our canine soldiers as well. Not to take away any credit from our human soldiers-for the loss of human life is never to be taken lightly, but almost as long as man has been waging war, dogs have stood at soldiers’ sides. Whether serving as sentries, messengers or search dogs, these loyal hounds share a unique ability: they can simultaneously save troops’ lives and destroy enemies.
My quick google of "dogs who have died in the service of our country" led me to this site:
http://www.uswardogs.org/
I'm sure there are countless others but if I tried to compile all the information available this post would become excessively long and I might lose some of you along the way. So with this post I hope to pique your interest enough to do some googling about our canine heroes on your own.
As you enjoy your long holiday weekend, let's take a moment and remember all who gave the ultimate sacrifice so that we may live in freedom.
Canines-we're more than just a pretty face. But if you are reading this, you probably already knew that.
Woofs and Memorial slobbers,
Chester
10 comments:
Of course, you are so right. We should honor all those who gave their all. Thanks for entering this wonderful post. --Cheryl
Beautiful post, and a great reminder that we take much for granted. Nice work Chester and family :)
Happy Memorial Day, Chester. We'll remember.
See ya!
Joey and Zeke
Chester - thanks for the reminder about these noble warriors. I plan to check out that website too.
What a great post, Chester!
Happy Memorial day to you!
Love ya lots,
Maggie and Mitch
What a great post. Have you been by to see me lately? I did a post on helping out those pups who are at war with the soldiers and how we can help. =) miss seeing you around. Are you going to be able to make it up to Canal Fulton for the dock diving contest?
Wonderful and touching post Chester.
-Nicole
3 Dogs & a Chick
Chester,
Your post was so interesting! Thanks for sharing this. We will be remembering the canines and humans who have given their lives.
Pedro
What a wonderful way to remember Memorial day. Loosing humans and canines is tragic..
Big Sloppy Kisses
Gus, Louie and Callie
Yes, we knew about the War Dogs. Did you know that out of 3000 dogs in the Vietnam conflict, only 200 made it home? They were abandoned by the United States and left for the Viet Cong to do what they wished with them...and that wasn't pretty at all. It's on our blog. It's so nice to find another blog that honored our canine heroes.
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