Memorial Day is Monday, May 26, 2025, a day in which we honor the courage, sacrifice, and enduring legacy of the men and women who gave their lives in service to their country.
Memorial Day, originally known as Decoration Day, is one of the federal holidays in the United States for honoring and mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is observed on the last Monday of May.
The first national observance of Memorial Day occurred on May 30, 1868. Then known as Decoration Day and observed on May 30, the holiday was proclaimed by Commander in Chief John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic to honor the Union soldiers who had died in the American Civil War.
The name “Memorial Day”, which was first used in 1882, gradually became more common than “Decoration Day” after World War II but was not declared the official name by federal law until 1967. On June 28, 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which moved four holidays, including Memorial Day, from their traditional dates to a specified Monday in order to create a three-day weekend. The change moved Memorial Day from its traditional May 30 date to the last Monday in May. The law took effect at the federal level in 1971.
Thank you to the following friends for helping us celebrate Memorial Day this year.
