Maj. Lisa Northway, an ordained minister who is Fort Sill’s garrison chaplain, was the keynote speaker Monday at the Memorial Day Com-Ceremony at Fort Sill National Cemetery near Elgin.
The Department of Veterans Affairs hosted a solemn wreath-laying ceremony that was accompanied by speeches, a moment of silence, and the rendering of military honors.
The VA operates 155 national cemeteries and 34 soldiers’ lots and monument sites in 44 states and Puerto Rico, according to Matthew Priest, assistant director of the Fort Sill and Fort Gibson national cemeteries. More than 5.4 million people – including 4.1 million veterans from the Revolutionary War to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – are buried in VA national cemeteries.
The Fires Center of Excellence and Fort Sill also hosted a Memorial Day observance Monday, at the Post Cemetery.
The Fort Sill Salute Battery presented a 21-gun national salute and raised the flag from half-staff to full staff. The 77th Army Band performed in honor of all those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the United States.
“Memorial Day serves as a solemn reminder of the bravery and selflessness of our fallen service members,” said Don Herrick, Fort Sill and Fires Center of Excellence public affairs officer. “Their sacrifices protect our freedoms and inspire us to uphold the values they fought for.”