Remembering sacrifices: Craigsville, other localities to hold Memorial Day services
For the first time in over ten years, the town of Craigsville will hold a Memorial Day service on Monday to honor the lives of local residents that were lost in combat.
The event, set for 2 p.m. on Monday, is one of several events set for Monday's holiday in recognition of members of the armed forces who gave their lives in the line of duty.
"So easily today, for some reason, these people are forgotten," said Craigsville mayor Richard Fox. Thanks in part to a donation from Augusta County, Craigsville has worked on cleaning up the war memorial in the town cemetery, installing new cement steps, lighting, and flower beds to restore the memorial to what it once was.
A decade ago, the memorial service was a big event that gathered the community, but the organization in charge of the event stopped hosting it. Fox wanted to bring the event back to show local families that their sacrifices still mean plenty to the area.
“I was not in the service, but a lot of my family members were, and it means a lot to me that they’re taken care of and recognized," Fox said.
Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, and offers an opportunity to commemorate U.S. service members who died while on active duty. The federal holiday set for the last Monday of May was first enacted following the Civil War, and was extended after World War I to honor Americans who have died in all wars.
"Nowadays, Memorial Day, the memorialization part of it sometimes gets overlooked," said VFW district commander Melissa Patrick.
In Craigsville, the war memorial recognizes service members from as far back as World War II and extends up until Operation Desert Storm.
As part of the festivities, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2216 in Staunton will make remarks. It's a busy weekend for VFW 2216 and other veteran organizations throughout the Staunton-Augusta County-Waynesboro area.
Organizations will be distributing poppies, a symbol of the sacrifice of soldiers, throughout the weekend. VFW 7814 will be at the Lowe's in Staunton distributing poppies on Friday, Saturday, and Monday afternoon, while VFW 2216 will have poppies available at the Vettes for Vets event Saturday at Gypsy Hill Park from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
More: 'Never says no': Verona's Eugene Chavis helps others, himself through service to VFW
Memorial Day events
Staunton
10 a.m. @ Gypsy Hill Park Bandstand
If it rains, the event will take place at the American Legion Building at 357 Cedar Green Road
Waynesboro
Those who wish to attend are encouraged to bring lawn chairs.
Craigsville
2 p.m. @ Craigsville Cemetery and Craigsville Community Building
The ceremony will start at 2 p.m. at the war memorial in the cemetery and be followed by a spaghetti dinner at the community building. In the event of rain, both events will be at the community building.
Grottoes
This is a rain or shine event.
More: Waynesboro City Council approves budget without much fanfare. What we learned on Monday night
This list of events is not comprehensive. Know about a Memorial Day event honoring the troops? Reach out and let us know!
—Akhil Ganesh is the Government Reporter at The News Leader. You can contact him at aganesh@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @akhildoesthings.
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Remembering sacrifices: Craigsville, other localities to hold Memorial Day services
