They were prepared for any kind of weather, and they got some sun and a little rain.
The faithful gathered Monday at the Chattanooga National Cemetery, wearing their red, white and blues, umbrellas at their side as men in uniforms kept rifles at their sides. The white graves stood in rows on the green landscape, each with a flag, each with a story. Men and women who could barely walk helped fill the seats while their grandchildren tugged at the grass underneath.
Ken and Judy Reno walked between the graves in the morning, visiting friends and family. They come here every year.
“I sure miss ’em,” Mr. Reno said.
The Memorial Day ceremony in Chattanooga featured a mix of those who served and those grateful for their service, those who are elected to office and those who are running. U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, himself a candidate for the governor of Tennessee and keynote speaker Monday, called his outreach to the families of fallen veterans a “ministry.”
“I remember when I first came here years and years ago, we had World War I veterans here,” Mr. Wamp said. “If you know (a veteran), please don’t miss a day thanking them.”
Herta Lemons lost her son, Karl Thompson, a Marine, during Vietnam. He died while out on patrol.
“It’s an honor that they’re not forgotten now,” she said. “Now people finally realize what those boys did for us.”
Flora Kernea lost her husband, Donald, in World War II. She said he became ill in Guam and died.
ABOUT MEMORIAL DAYMemorial Day began as Decoration Day in 1866 to honor those who died in the Civil War, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans affairs.
“I have a lot of family buried here to honor,” she said. “We were the ladies who had to stand by and take care of our husbands. Then we had to fight the government for benefits.”
Zelma Phillips, president of the Greater Chattanooga Gold Star Mothers, lost her son, Sgt. Michael Blake, a Marine who was on leave when he died in a car accident. The wives and mothers console one another, she said.
Rep. Wamp asked the crowd to lift up their hands in thanks and they did so.
Afterward, the Choo Choo Chorus sang “God Bless America,” and the people joined them, their voices echoing across the field in unison.
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