Memorial Day

Jeff Childerston of Hagerstown was working Monday as a lifeguard at Claude M. Potterfield Pool on Frederick Street and said that he was surprised by local residents braving the water despite the cool Memorial Day temperatures. “They've been out here everyday this weekend, and it's not been nice,” Childerston, 21, said. Memorial Day temperatures never reached 70 degrees, according to Hagerstown weather observer Greg Keefer's website at http://i4weather.net, but that did not stop local residents from the picnics and swimming that come with the unofficial start of summer.

For Vietnam War veteran Michael Read, Monday's free pancake breakfast at War Memorial Park in Martinsburg was a great opportunity. “At gatherings like these, you get to see a lot of other guys,” Read said before making a dent in the pancakes and sausage he and his wife, Carol, were served at the Martinsburg Rotary Club's annual Memorial Day event. The Martinsburg couple were among about 500 people who were served at the three-hour breakfast, according to Rotary Club President Pam Wagoner, who co-chaired the event with Chris Johnson.

Every year, Jenny and Howard Metger go to the Memorial Day service at Cedar Lawn Memorial Park west of Hagerstown and look for their fathers' flags. The large American flags once draped the caskets of their fathers, who were World War II veterans and are buried at the cemetery. They are among 35 to 40 such flags flown at the annual service. “Oh, it (was) amazing, amazing, and beautiful,” Jenny Metger said of the first time she saw the large flags at the service held the Sunday before Memorial Day. Her husband, Howard, said it's an honor to have their fathers' flags flown during the service.

This is a reprise (with some minor changes) of a column I wrote for Memorial Day 2011. It is not my best column, nor is it my worst. What it is, however, is a statement of my continuing and unfaltering support for those who protect our nation and our freedoms. I offer these words, once again, as a tribute to those men and women.  According to my records, the original was the 33rd column I had written for The Herald-Mail. Thirty-three is a lucky number to some, and it reminds me of a beer many of us drank while serving in Vietnam - Ba Moui Ba, or Bierre 33 as the French would say. These memories of luck and beer are relevant to me and many “brothers and sisters in arms” as today is part of a Memorial Day weekend.

Activities and programs scheduled for Monday, May 27, through Friday, May 31, at senior citizens centers in Washington County, Md., and Franklin County, Pa.: Maryland Francis Murphy 20014 Rosebank Way, Hagerstown 240-313-9300, ext. 154 Closed for Memorial Day - Monday Healthy vision with Ita Kavanagh - Tuesday, 10 a.m. Ring toss with John Garnand - Wednesday, 10 a.m. Wear purple for Peace Day...

“I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps, They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps; I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps: His day is marching on.” That verse is taken directly from the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and was written at the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C., by Julia Ward Howe on Nov. 18, 1861. The music was borrowed from a rendition of “John Brown's Body,” a tune developed by some Northern soldiers.

From the Civil War, when those who gave their lives led to “a new birth of freedom,” to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when the nation's resolve was tested, military personnel in the country have risen to meet something bigger than themselves, a former Washington County Commissioner and retired U.S. Army official said Sunday. Ronald L. Bowers' comments came during an annual ceremony in front of the Washington County Courthouse in commemoration of Memorial Day, the day set aside to honor the nation's men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces.

Memory is a customizable accessory. Every owner can be very selective in what they decide to remember. Memories can be good or bad, fond or frightening, happy or sad. Those memories can even be reshaped and colored to keep everything favorable. And that might be the problem. Memories are like Netflix - they are on demand. Whenever you have time, order one up and check it off the list. Today is a day we have set aside to inventory memories. Memorial Day has become a day to reflect on the past.

The following local events are scheduled in observance of Memorial Day: Monday  The Combined Veterans Council of Waynesboro, Pa., will host its annual Memorial Day activities starting with Waynesboro's holiday parade. The parade, which features between 40 and 45 units, will step off at 9 a.m. at CV Avenue, head west on Main Street, go south on Broad Street and conclude at Memorial Park. The speaker for the Memorial Day service will be retired Lt. Col. Alan J. “Jeff” Rock of Waynesboro.

Eric Forrester brought barbecue and entertainment to Fort Ritchie on Saturday with a competition and fundraiser he named “Memorial Day PigNic.” Forrester, owner of Mason-Dixon BBQ Services near Greencastle, Pa., and his wife, Carrie Forrester, have worked together for about 20 years as volunteers for the Make-a-Wish Foundation. A few years ago, Eric decided to use barbecue as a way to raise money for the organization that grants wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions by hosting Smoketoberfest in Chambersburg, Pa. Ann Waltman, a regional manager for Make-a-Wish Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania, said those events have raised between $6,000 and $10,000 each year.