Take some time to remember

  • Published
  • By Chief Master Sgt. (Ret.) Norm Marous
  • Vandenberg Retired Center director
On Monday, May 30, many folks will be enjoying a long weekend, with picnics, trips to the beach, shopping sales and family gatherings... all of which is good... BUT please don't forget to find time for the real reason for the holiday. Memorial Day is intended to be a time of remembrance of those who came before us in military service and have now passed from this life, many of them in combat. However, the majority of our fellow citizens will focus all of their time on entertainment and shopping this weekend, and (sadly) give almost no notice to the real meaning of the holiday, which was originally called Decoration Day and was intended as a time reserved for decorating the graves of fallen warriors with flags and flowers.

Those of us at Vandenberg will have several great opportunities to take little more than an hour from the long weekend to honor our fallen comrades. I encourage all active duty, Reserve, Guard, retirees and even veteran members to put on your service dress uniform (which is appropriate IAW AFI 36-2903, Table 6.1) and join me in remembering our fallen brothers and sisters at one or more of the following listed Central Coast Memorial Day events (most with team Vandenberg Key-Note Speakers):

· 9:30 a.m.: Solvang Park, Solvang - Lt. Col. Scott Romberger, 381st Training Support Squadron commander
· 10 a.m.: 47th Annual Memorial Day Program, Los Osos Valley Memorial Park, Los Osos - Chief Master Sgt. (Ret.) Norm Marous, Vandenberg Retired Center director and Air Force Association Sr. vice president
· 11 a.m.: Evergreen Cemetery, Lompoc, (top of south C Street) - Col. Keith Balts, 30th Space Wing vice commander
· 11 a.m.: Santa Maria Cemetery, Santa Maria (off Stowell at College Rd) - Col. Richard Boltz, 30th Space Wing commander and Ms. Kristin Johnson
· 11 a.m.: Guadalupe Cemetery, Guadalupe - Lt. Col. Patrick Reese, 30th Medical Support Squadron commander
· 1 p.m.: River Park Vietnam Memorial, Lompoc (off East Ocean Avenue past Home Depot) - Col. Kelly Kirts, 30th Mission Support Group commander
· 1 p.m.: Elks-Unocal Events Center, Santa Maria - Maj. Brian Anderson (USMC) Joint Functional Component Command for Space, plans
· 10 a.m.: Memorial Day Service at Orcutt Pine Grove Cemetary - (off Clark Avenue at Bradley and Stubblefield Roads)
· Memorial Day weekend services at the Chapel #1 - 8:30 p.m. (Contemporary), 10 a.m. (Catholic) and 11:30 a.m. (Gospel).

Please take one of these opportunities to come out into the community whose support we seek and have come to expect... show your pride, wear the uniform... let the community show you its love (which I assure they are eager to do), and show them that we appreciate them too. When you attend these events you will find 50-200 people (mostly non-military and/or elderly veterans) in attendance, which is heart warming, but as I survey the crowds each year, I always think of the tens of thousands who have not taken the time. If we, as military members, can't find time to honor them, is it really fair to expect the general public to do it?

Be among the few and the proud (to borrow from the slogan of our Marine Corps comrades)... be there... and thanks for caring!