The Homer American Legion and Legion Auxiliary will host a Memorial Day ceremony at GAR Cemetery on May 31.
Guests are encouraged to gather at 11 a.m. This year’s ceremony will include a presentation of the colors, the laying of a wreath, a prayer and a 21-gun salute. A smorgasbord will be held at the Village Hall following the event.
Memorial Day derived from Decoration Day, which may have originated when southern women’s groups honored fallen soldiers when they decorated their graves.
General John Logan official declared Memorial Day on May 5, 1868 before it was first observed on May 30 when flowers were laid on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. New York was the first state to recognize Memorial Day in 1973.
Most northern states observed Memorial Day while southern states honored their fallen soldiers on a different day until after World War I. When Congress passed the National Holiday Act of 1971, Memorial Day became a three-day weekend celebrated on the last Monday of May.
