Memorial Day in Margraten

Every Memorial Day in Reedley, my parents and I would always head down to the cemetery with what seemed like half the town to honor those who have given their lives for the United States of America.  The sun was usually blazing hot in my wool uniform, and I remember the relief of being able to wear a dress one year when I came home from college for Memorial Day.

But how many Americans can say they have attended a Memorial Day service outside our nation?  How many Americans have seen first-hand the fields where battles were fought and people gave their lives?  How many have been to graveyards of Europe where thousands and thousands of Americans found their final resting place?  And how many Americans have talked to people who actually lived through WWII and saw the war take place in their own backyard?

I am astounded at the stories I have heard since living in this area on the border between Germany and the Netherlands.  Stories of smugglers and hoarders, people who still have boxes of coffee and soap in their basement in case another war occurs.  Complete professions who search out and safely dispose of undetonated bombs that lie on potential building sites.  And those who have a collection of shell cases and Nazi artifacts that they simply found walking around in the forest.

This past Memorial Day was a special one for me.  I was able to honor the men and women who gave their lives for freedom in the place where they died.  Surrounded by thousands of Dutch people (and yes, Americans too), the whole experience was surreal.  The sun still blazed down on us, but these Dutch people came to show respect and gratitude for what the Americans did to help them.  In their minds, the memory is still fresh. 

The American cemetery in Margraten is unique one in that each grave has been adopted.  One Dutch family is in charge of each grave and has been since WWII.  So many people want to participate in the Adopt-a-Grave program that there is even a waiting list.  Over the years, the community has become so connected to the men and women buried there, that some are even in communication with the families of the deceased back in the US.  And every year in Margraten, the Netherlands, there is a ceremony in honor of Memorial Day.

Joint Forces Color Guard

Not only was the Ambassador of the United States of America to the Netherlands present, but also the King's Commissioner for the Province of Limburg (the area closest to me in the Netherlands) and all the high-ranking military officials stationed at the NATO base in Brunssum.  The key-note speaker was F.D.R.'s granddaughter Anna Eleanor Roosevelt.  Two military bands played from the Royal Netherlands Armed Forces and the United States Armed Forces, and there was also a Joint Color Guard from the various branches.  In addition, US military members from JFC Brunssum and NATO Airbase Geilenkirchen assisted with wreath-laying, so I knew many people involved in the ceremony.

Upon each grave throughout the cemetery was both a Dutch flag and an American flag.  Some graves also had the flag of their state and most had flowers on them.  A few of the graves even had a picture of the person who was buried there.

I cannot express how inspiring my Memorial Day experience was this year.  To see so many Dutch people show appreciation made me proud to be an American.

State Flags of Wisconsin and California side-by-side

Each grave had both the Dutch and American flags

Margraten, the Netherlands