By Marty van Duyne
For PotomacLocal.com
Fredericksburg, Va. — Memorial Day has become nearly a week-long event in the local vicinity.
Area Veteran and military support organizations have conducted ceremonies and services to honor those that made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country for the past week.
The Virginia Wounded Warrior Program held their regular support group meeting at the Fredericksburg War Memorial on May 24.
According to Virginia Wounded Warrior Program Region I Coordinator Camilla Schwoebel, members of the group made comments to commemorate fallen comrades in arms who names on engraved upon the memorial before placing a wreath at the site.
“Many of the group personally knew some of those killed in the war on terror,” said Schwoebel. “And another Veteran spoke of a fallen Vietnam veteran.”
Saturday morning found Virginia Blue Star Mothers from the greater Fredericksburg area tying yellow ribbons around trees and lampposts in Old Town and throughout Central Park.
And Saturday evening saw the terraced hills of Maryes Heights aglow with luminaria honoring the more than 15 thousand fallen buried at the National Cemetery.
The event that has been conducted since 1995 with the assistance of local Boy and Girl Scouts took on additional significance this Memorial Day as the National Park Service begins their program to honor the sesquicentennial remembrance of the Civil War.
Our current Memorial Day is believed to have formed its roots following the Civil War when ceremonies were held to honor the war dead.
Each year as the candles are lit and dusk falls, a military bugler attired in dress blues plays Taps every half hour from 8 p.m. until 11 p.m.
Quantico based Marine Corps Band Staff Sgt. Bradley Erdman had the honor for the first time this year.
At 8 p.m., he snapped to attention alongside the flagpole near the entrance to the cemetery and raised his bugle to his lips.
He then walked the perimeter of the cemetery and lifted his bugle six more times, ending each performance by rendering a smart salute to the fallen.
And every time those 24 notes wafted on the air from the far reaches of the heights, the cemetery took on an almost surreal ambiance. It was as if the strains of that tribute to the fallen were reaching out from the past to honor the dead buried there nearly 150 years before.
Sunday morning dawned early as Stafford Sheriffs led nearly 100 bikers across Falmouth Bridge to rendezvous with several hundred thousand Rolling Thunder XXIV bikers in Washington, D.C.
The bikers stage at Big Daddy Leather in Fredericksburg and ride in two teams; one heading to the Pentagon and one heading directly into D.C.
On Memorial Day, ceremonies in the area ran nonstop most of the day.
The Ladies Memorial Association annual ceremony to honor fallen southern soldiers was held at the Fredericksburg Confederate Cemetery at 10 a.m.
This 145th event included the traditional “strewing of petals” on the graves of the dead.
At 10:30 a.m., crowds gathered at the Fredericksburg War Memorial at the intersection of Liberty Street for the Fredericksburg Area Veteran’s Council ceremony.
Knights of Columbus Honor America Corps presented a procession of American and service flags. And Faith Baptist Schools Enduring Freedom Honor Team band played the National Anthem and Taps.
Active military and Veteran’s attended the ceremony that included a Memorial Day message from Chairman Angelo Laviano and a tribute to Our Fallen Heroes by Vice Chairman Larry Repenshek.
U.S. Navy Commander Roger E. Vanderwerken gave the invocation and benediction. Bill Bovee of VFW 10546 led the Pledge of Allegiance and Retired Marine Sgt. Maj. Neal King placed the wreath at the memorial.
And though the crowd gathered to attend the formal ceremony, there was a renewed camaraderie within the assemblage.
World War II Veteran Frank Niederkofler sat in the shade holding his shadowbox of memorabilia from his Army Service.
As attendees stepped foreword to greet him, a woman commented, “You’re the most photographed man here today.”
And indeed the Purple Heart awardee that resides in Stafford did attract attention. But other Veteran’s of previous conflicts received the same thanks and admiration from the crowd that braved the extreme heat to pay their respects to the fallen.
A formal ceremony was also conducted at the National Cemetery at 11 a.m. Monday. It featured remarks by Central Virginia Battlefield’s Trust Board Member Kevin Leahy.
The 2009 HBO movie “Taking Chance” was aired at Riverbend High School to benefit several charities including the Some Gave All Foundation, the Quantico U.S. Marine Wounded Regiment, and the Chance Phelps Foundation.
The story and screenplay was written by Stafford retired Marine Lt. Col. Michael Strobl. It details his journey to escort fallen Marine Lance Cpl. Chance R. Phelps home to his family.
Kevin Bacon portrayed Strobl in the movie on a journey that took him from Dover Air Force Base to Wyoming.
HBO also aired the movie this weekend. It concludes with a tribute listing the names of all who have fallen in the War on Terror, including those whose names are engraved upon the wall at the Fredericksburg War Memorial.
This special tribute can also be viewed online.
Marty van Duyne is an award winning independent photographer and journalist.
