Xavier Marks Memorial Day

This Memorial Day, Xavier remembers those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation—especially the brave Sons of Xavier among them.

Originally called Decoration Day (from the early tradition of decorating graves with flowers, wreaths, and flags), Memorial Day is a time to remember those who died in service to our country. It originated in the years following the Civil War and became a federal holiday in 1971.

During the first national celebration of Memorial Day in 1868, former Union General and sitting Ohio Congressman James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers who were buried there. Garfield spoke these words: “We do not know one promise these men made, one pledge they gave, one word they spoke—but we do know they summed up and perfected, by one supreme act, the highest virtues of men and citizens. For love of country they accepted death, and thus resolved all doubts, and made immortal their patriotism and their virtue.”