DeSantis in Jax: Memorial Day not for politics, but to celebrate 'indispensable Americans'

Beth Reese Cravey, Florida Times-Union
Updated ·4 min read
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Gov. Ron DeSantis, who recently announced a presidential run, spoke at Jacksonville's 2023 Memorial Day observance.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, who recently announced a presidential run, spoke at Jacksonville's 2023 Memorial Day observance.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, who recently announced his presidential run, spoke at Jacksonville's Memorial Day ceremony Monday, talking not of political issues but the sacrifices of the U.S. military and their families.

He spoke of flying into Washington when he served in Congress, seeing the National Mall, Lincoln Memorial, reflecting pool and the U.S. Capitol from one side of the plane. Though they generated a sense of pride, he said, they were not the best monuments to see.

"If you looked out the right side of the plane you could look over the Potomac River and you would a small set of monuments orderly arranged over the rolling hills of Arlington National Ceremony," the Navy veteran said. "You can have the best political leaders … the best political ideals … but those don't run on auto pilot. If you don't have people that are willing to stand up, answer the call, risk their lives and indeed give the last full measure of devotion and service to this country, then none of that stuff amounts to very much."

Memorial Day celebrates the "indispensable Americans," DeSantis said. "We would not be free people without those sacrifices."

Florida is home to nearly 1.5 million veterans, the third largest veteran population in the country, and 20 military installations, according to the governor.

The ceremony was held at Jacksonville's Veterans Memorial Wall, which was dedicated in 1995 and serves as a tribute to about 1,700 Jacksonville-area Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard and Merchant Marine heroes. The 65-foot-long black granite monument contains the names of servicemen and women from World War I through the War on Terror, with an eternal flame torch.

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Rear Adm. James A. Aiken, commander of the U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command, based at Mayport Naval Station, spoke at Jacksonville's 2023 Memorial Day observance.
Rear Adm. James A. Aiken, commander of the U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command, based at Mayport Naval Station, spoke at Jacksonville's 2023 Memorial Day observance.

The keynote speech was made by Rear Adm. James A. Aiken, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. Fourth Fleet based at Mayport Naval Station in Jacksonville. He thanked families of lost men and women in the military for a debt "we can never repay."

The Pittsburgh native said Jacksonville has a "special" relationship with its military communities. It shows, he said, in "the way you treat the military, the way you treat veterans and the way you treat first responders." He noted the city's veterans memorial wall is the second largest in the country, after the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington.

"Our job is to remember. Memorial Day is all about remembering," Aiken said.

He noted "iconic days" in the nation's collective history, when most people can say where they were: Dec. 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor; Nov. 22, 1963, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy; Jan. 28, 1986, the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger; and Sept. 11, 2001, the terrorist attacks on the U.S.

Aiken asked that we also remember Sept. 12, 2001, the day after the attacks.

"We paused that day. We listened that day. We cared that day," he said.

Other Memorial Day events

A hand-crafted "Flags of Valor" commemorative token is shown on a grave stone at the Jacksonville Memorial Cemetery. The tokens were placed by volunteers for the Travis Manion Foundation and Wounded Warrior Project.
A hand-crafted "Flags of Valor" commemorative token is shown on a grave stone at the Jacksonville Memorial Cemetery. The tokens were placed by volunteers for the Travis Manion Foundation and Wounded Warrior Project.

The Travis Manion Foundation conducted its annual #TheHonorProject at the Jacksonville National Cemetery. About 70 volunteers from the foundation and the Wounded Warrior Project placed hand-crafted "Flags of Valor" commemorative tokens "at the resting places of fallen heroes" and paused to "reflect on their service and sacrifice," according to a news release.

This year, the Honor Project has expanded to 14 national cemeteries.

The Pennsylvania-based foundation works to empower veterans and their families of men and women who gave their lives in military service, It is a partner of Wounded Warrior Project, a veterans service organization.

These #Honor Project commemorative tokens were placed on the graves at 14 national cemeteries, including Jacksonville.
These #Honor Project commemorative tokens were placed on the graves at 14 national cemeteries, including Jacksonville.

Over the weekend, DeSantis and wife Casey hosted about 400 veterans and their families at the Governor’s Mansion to honor the Memorial Day holiday.

"This Memorial Day we honor our men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom," Casey DeSantis said. "We will never forget their service and commitment to our country. … May God bless our fallen heroes and their families."

bcravey@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4109

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: DeSantis in Jacksonville: Memorial Day honors people who 'risk lives'