Memorial Day is a National holiday observed annually on the last Monday in May. The holiday honors men and women who have died while serving in the U.S. military. To observe Memorial Day, many military cemeteries and war memorials hold commemorative events to honor and remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country. There are a variety of other meaningful events, such as military parades, concerts, and flags placed on military gravesites.
Memorial Day weekend is also the unofficial beginning of summer. As with most holiday weekends, it is a time for sales and shopping, and fun with friends and family. Retailers and restaurants offer many discounts and freebies over the weekend. Some of the discounts and deals are especially for military personnel or veterans, but many others are available to anyone.
Memorial Day commemorative events
(Listed alphabetically by location)
Tahoma National Cemetery (18600 SE 240th Street, Kent, WA). Join the annual Memorial Day Ceremony. Arrive early as parking is limited. Please be mindful to not park on the turf. More info: Tahoma National Cemetery | Facebook
Mountain View Funeral Home & Cemetery (4100 Steilacoom Blvd. SW, Lakewood, WA 98499) and the Pierce County Veterans Advisory Council invites you to their annual Memorial Day service. Mountain View will be open all weekend long for visitors. More info: Mountain View Funeral Home & Cemetery | Facebook
Veterans Park (44th Avenue West and Veterans Way, Lynnwood, 98036) Memorial Day Ceremony includes music, laying of a wreath, and a rifle salute. More info: Events Calendar – City of Lynnwood
Mill Creek’s Memorial Day Commemorative Ceremony at Library Park (15429 Bothell Everett Hwy, Mill Creek, WA 98012). More info: Mill Creek | Facebook and City of Mill Creek
Memorial Day Recognition Event at the State Capitol (416 Sid Snyder Avenue SW, Olympia, WA 98504) in the rotunda at the State Capitol. More info: and Getting Here: Directions & Parking | Washington State Capitol Campus
VFW Post 1263 Renton Memorial Day events include commemorations at several locations.
- Don Persson Senir Center (211 Burnett Ave N).
- Mt. Olivet Cemetery (100 Blaine Ave NE) at 0930 at Fred Hancock and Frank R. Vaise gravesite.
- Greenwood Memorial Park (350 Monroe Ave NE) annual Memorial Day program.
- Renton Veteran’s Memorial Park (523 S 3rd St) annual ceremony followed by a potluck at 1500 with the Post providing hamburgers and brats.
- More info: WDVA Memorial Day Sched May 2025.pdf and Calendar | Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA)
Evergreen Washelli (11111 Aurora Ave N, Seattle, WA 98133) annual Memorial Day Celebration begins with placement of over 6,000 flags. More info: Evergreen Washelli | Facebook
Washington Memorial/Bonney-Watson (16445 International Blvd, Seatac, WA 98188) Memorial Day celebration includes engaging activities for the whole family. More info: Bonney Watson | Facebook
Seattle’s First Memorial Day Service 1927
Arlington Cemetery across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. is our nation’s most renowned veterans’ cemetery. For Seattle-area veterans and their spouses, being interred in Virginia would greatly hinder loved ones from being able to visit their graves as often as they would prefer. As early as 1904, local veterans of the Spanish American War began to search for ways to honor fallen comrades in a local cemetery. However, the start of the First World War delayed their efforts.
In 1927, Clinton S. Harley, then General Manager of Evergreen Washelli Cemetery in north Seattle and himself a veteran of the Spanish American War, offered a large section of the cemetery for the burial of local veterans and their spouses. The first Memorial Day Service at the new Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery was held May 30, 1927.
Seattle’s mayor, Bertha K. Landes (the first woman to head the government of a major American city), called attention to the 1927 Memorial Day services in Seattle and issued a proclamation.
National Moment of Remembrance
The National Moment of Remembrance is an annual event that asks Americans, wherever they are at 3:00 p.m. local time on Memorial Day, to pause for a duration of one minute to remember those who have died in military service to the United States. The time 3 p.m. was chosen because it is the time when most Americans are enjoying time off from work for the national holiday.
The TAPS ACROSS AMERICA tribute debuted on national television in 2020 when CBS news “On the Road” correspondent Steve Hartman teamed up with retired Air Force bugler Jari Villanueva, founder of TAPS FOR VETERANS and TAPS ACROSS AMERICA. The two men invited buglers and musicians to sound Taps from their front porches at the same time. The massive, simultaneous event replaced picnics, parades, and other celebrations cancelled due to the pandemic.
The response was overwhelming: More than 10,000 musicians joined in a nationwide salute to remember fallen service members. TAPS ACROSS AMERICA brings the country together, offering everyone an opportunity to Honor, Remember and Reflect in the true spirit of Memorial Day. TAPS ACROSS AMERICA continues every Memorial Day, once again bringing together thousands of musicians to sound Taps at 3 pm (local). More info: Taps Across America
History of Memorial Day
The roots of the Memorial Day holiday go back to the Civil War. People began the practice of placing flags or flowers on the graves at newly formed military cemeteries. In 1868, General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11 proclaimed the date of “Decoration Day”.
“The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land.” — General John Logan.
In 1971, Congress passed the National Holiday Act, establishing the last Monday in May as the federal holiday Memorial Day.
To date, the Civil War has claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history (Civil War deaths ~625,000; World War I 116,516; World War II 405,399; plus numerous other wars that have claimed ahother 1.8 million American lives). The YouTube video below is a sobering visit to American Military cemeteries around the world.
Watch the YouTube video below Here’s to The Heroes Who Never Came Home – YouTube as a reminder of what this holiday weekend is really about.
