Memorial Day ceremony at Fort Richardson National Cemetery May 26

Memorial Day is set aside as a day for honoring and mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is observed every year on the last Monday of May.

The Fort Richardson National Cemetery is hosting a Memorial Day ceremony at noon, May 26, to honor our nation’s fallen heroes.

Ceremonies begin at 11:30 a.m. as music is set to begin, followed by Keynote Speaker Verdie Bowen Sr., Director, Alaska Office of Veterans Affairs and a 23-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force. The ceremony concludes at 1:00 p.m.

To streamline access for the public to attend this free event, the right-hand traffic lane of the Fort Richardson Gate will be dedicated for controlled, direct access to and from the Fort Richardson National Cemetery.

There will be no need to stop at the Richardson Visitor Control Center to receive a Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (JBER) visitor pass between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.; visitors going to the National Cemetery between these hours will simply enter the Richardson Gate through the right lane and be directed on a specified route to the cemetery parking areas.

Those who arrive prior to 10:00 a.m. or after 12:15 p.m. will be directed to the Richardson Visitor Control Center to obtain a visitor pass via the normal process.

Once the ceremony ends and guests complete their visit at the cemetery, they will be directed off the installation via the same route they entered.

Outside of the hours listed above, all U.S. citizens 16 or older requesting access to the cemetery should expect criminal background checks for potential disqualifying information and, upon successful screening, will be issued a visitor pass.

Non-U.S. citizens must have a Department of Defense-affiliated sponsor to escort them onto the installation and must have requested access to JBER four weeks in advance to have additional screening completed.

The direct-access process on May 26 is to and from the Fort Richardson National Cemetery, and for the official Memorial Day ceremony only. Patrons found outside of the designated areas may be charged with trespassing.