Happy Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day! Here is our Memorial Day coupon code: Enter “flag” at checkout or 20% off! Expires Friday, May 30th.

I read that a poll found that up to 80% of Americans do not know the meaning of Memorial Day. Here is a quick history lesson: Memorial Day, observed on the last Monday of May, honors Americans that have died defending the USA. Memorial Day became a federal holiday in 1971 and most banks, businesses and shops are closed. It also marks the unofficial beginning of summer. Over 600,000 soldiers were killed during the American Civil War (1861-1865) making it America’s deadliest war.

Since there were so many killed during this war, national cemeteries were established and Americans started to hold springtime tributes to all of the fallen soldiers. Flags and flowers were placed on graves and prayers were chanted, paying tribute to the young soldiers who had made the ultimate sacrifice. This is how Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, originated. The town of Waterloo, NY is said to be the ‘official birthplace’ of Memorial Day: on May 5th, 1866, all of the shops in Waterloo were closed so that Americans could pay tribute to the fallen soldiers.

Many people observe Memorial Day by having parties and barbecues, visiting graves and cemeteries, attending parades or just enjoying the day off. Since 1911, The Indy 500 has been held on Memorial Day weekend. In December, 2000 congress established the “National Moment of Remembrance”: At 3:00pm on Memorial Day, Americans everywhere are supposed to pause for one minute to reflect on and remember the sacrifices made to provide freedom for all, although many people don’t even know about this.

Fun Fact: A group of children touring the nation’s capital were asked “What is Memorial Day?” to which they responded, “That’s the day the pool opens!”. This is why the National Moment of Remembrance was established.

Enjoy your Memorial Day!

-M

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