Keynote Speech at Intrepid Sea, Air, & Space Museum Memorial Day 2013

It is a privilege to speak to you this at this historic site, and to represent the US Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard at this remarkable place. How fitting to stand in the shadow of the USS Intrepid, and to remember the uncommon valor and sacrifice of our armed forces on this Memorial Day. The Intrepid is an inspiration to all who know its brilliant story; a monumental example of the selfless sacrifice of all those in uniform who have served our country, lived its values, earned our freedoms.

This importance of this day is well described by Former Secretary of State, Colin Powell, who said:  “All of us lead busy lives. We have little time to pause and reflect. But I ask of you: Do not hasten through Memorial Day. Take the time to remember the good souls whose memories are a blessing to you and your family. Take your children to our memorial parks and monuments. Teach them the values that lend meaning to our lives and to the life of our Nation. Above all, take the time to honor our fellow Americans who have given their last full measure of devotion to our country and for the freedoms we cherish.”

The sacrifice of our Soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and coast guardsmen is what allows us to celebrate a Memorial Day weekend. They have made possible the opportunity for every American to pursue their dreams, to live in safety and freedom; to bring to life the promise of this great country.

And so on this Memorial Day we stop, pause, and remember the examples of courage and the sacred commitment to our liberty that servicemen and women earned with their lives. We remember the hardship of our Colonial Army from Lexington to Yorktown; the Regiments and Militias at Bull Run and Gettysburg; the doughboys and Marines in the trenches of Belleau Wood and Chateau Thierry, the Rangers scaling the steep cliffs at Pointe Du Hoc, and the sailors who fought this ship at Leyte Gulf, Okinawa, and in the Vietnam War. We remember on this day those who answered the national call to duty in all the conflicts of our history. We especially remember on this day those who gave their all over the past twelve years in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, and all those who are currently serving around the world. On this American holiday we are mindful that a Marine is risking his life for us on a joint US/AFGHAN patrol in the rugged terrain of Helmand. An Air Force crewman is flying a long and dangerous mission bringing critical supplies to our troops in Kabul. A sailor is far from her home and family protecting freedom of the seas on the seemingly infinite Pacific Ocean. They do this for us; they do this for their country; they do this because, like millions before them – and like so many of you here today – they answered a higher calling, to preserve our liberty and that of others.

On my hardest days, I have spent time serving at the funerals of the fallen from our campaigns. I know well the crosses, row on row, at Arlington National Cemetery and many other places in our country and overseas where our armed forces rest in honored glory. At those final military ceremonies, families are often filled with a mixture of grief and pride, by the commitment of life given for our values, our freedoms. This week I received a letter from just such a family. Their daughter, an Army aviator, was killed in Afghanistan in March, and the funeral was at Arlington in April. Here is some of what they wrote:   “It means a great deal that her sacrifice and service to our country are so appreciated…She was a very patriotic young woman.. a kind and compassionate person who had a smile for everyone. She was a great daughter, sister, aunt, wife and friend. She lived life to the fullest in her too short 27 years; she loved to fly, she loved being a soldier, and she loved serving her country. Thank you again.. God bless America…”

The American Military Cemetery at Coleville Sur Mer in Normandy, overlooks the historic crucible of Omaha Beach. In the simple chapel at that remarkable place are written these words on white stone walls, “Think not only upon their passing, remember the glory of their spirit.” And so we do, with great respect on this Memorial Day.

The words of President Lincoln at Gettysburg speak to our purpose,  “…to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion.”
The sacrifices of today are no less important to the preservation of freedom than those about which President Lincoln so brilliantly spoke. Generation after generation of Americans has taken up the same commitment to liberty because it must be earned again and again.

Each generation has its heroes. Some of them are gathered with us here today, and their presence gives us respectful pause, great pride, and the freely given thanks of those who will always be in their debt for having given so much. I ask you to take the time to thank our veterans well before Memorial Day, thank them for their service, for their valorous commitment to our nation. They are the nameless heroes of our country, and we owe them so very much.

Finally, on this Memorial Day we think of those who cannot be with us, who gave their all. We neither forget them nor their example of courage, dedication, and sacrifice for our freedom. As the writer Laurence Binyon wrote at the end of World War I, “They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun, and in the morning We will remember them…”

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