“We are assembled once again to express our sincere reverence.” VFW, Boy Scouts pay tribute on Memorial Day

Members of VFW Post 9365, along with Boy Scouts from troops 300, 360, 395 gathered in Wasilla to march from the Veterans Wall to the Wasilla Aurora Cemetery to honor fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen as part of their annual Memorial Day ceremonies.

Led by the Boy Scouts and escorted by the Wasilla Police Department, dozens of community members, including veterans and their families, made the trek to the cemetery to pay their respects to the duty to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

“So long will the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States render tribute to our heroic dead,” said Ryan Moe, who served in the Air Force during the somber ceremony. “On this day, forever consecrated to our heroic dead, we are assembled once again to express our sincere reverence.”

Gathered around the grave of Sgt Richard Johnson, who served during the Vietnam War, members of the VFW Post 9365 gathered to pay tribute to those who were killed in the service to the United States. “This grave represents the resting place of many departed comrades who served in all wars. Wherever the body of a comrade lies, there in the ground is hallowed.”

Men and women of the VFW then laid flowers and a laurel wreath, symbolic of the sacrifices made by service members around the world. “Our presence here is a solemn commemoration of all these comrades, an expression of our tribute to their devoted duty, to their courage, and their patriotism,” said Moe.

After a blessing was offered, a 21-gun salute was rendered and ‘Taps’ was played. Members of the public then paid their respects before departing the cemetery.

The VFW and its Auxiliary asks all Americans to take a moment each day, but especially on this Memorial Day, to reflect on the men and women who laid down their lives in service to our country. Their sacrifice is the true cost of the freedoms we enjoy, and it is a debt our nation can never repay.

The ceremony was followed by an open house cook out at the VFW Post.