Memorial Day for most of us is the start of the summer – the long weekend is about grilling, going to the pool and gearing up for summer. But the real significance of Memorial Day is to honor those who served and died for our great country.

It started as Decoration Day (what my grandmother always called it), the last Monday in May, to honor the Civil War dead. After World War I, it changed to honor anyone who perished in the line of duty.

Myrna Blyth and Chriss Winston , authors of “How to Raise an American, 1776 Fun and Easy Tools, Tips & Activities to Help Your Child Love This Country,” offer the following 8 easy ways your family can observe this holiday. These appear in their section about Memorial Day starting on page 157.

• Visit a war memorial or veterans’ cemetery in your area.
• Check with your local American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars posts for special observances or ceremonies going on in your town.
• Take small gifts such as flowers, cookies or books to the local veterans’ hospital to say thank you for their service.
• Watch a tv show or DVD about our military or a famous war or battle. They are playing all kinds of shows like that on History Channel and the Military Channel this weekend.
• Watch a movie together (depending on your children’s ages) such as Saving Private Ryan, Patton, The Patriot, or Black Hawk Down. Since they are about war, these tend toward violence so be prepared.
• For younger kids, you can have them do a craft such as designing a poster or a postage stamp in honor of our soldiers. You can also find the flags for each branch of the military at www.enchantedlearning.com/usa/flags.
• Support our troops who are currently serving by sending a care package or a letter. You can adopt a soldier through an organization they suggest called Soldier’s Angels (www.soldiersangels.org) and send them monthly correspondence or goodies.

These are great tips for this special day. At the end of their section about Memorial Day, they have what they call at Dinner Table Debate; this one is about dying for your country and how to answer that question from your child. Here’s what they say about what we can do to honor those who were brave enough to die for us:

“…we honor the fallen of the past by living responsibly and being grateful that there are men and women willing to make the greatest sacrifice to protect us and our freedoms.”

Whoa, while I wrote this, two fighter jets just passed over – just a little reminder of the greatness of our nation. Please remember this today.

About the authors: Blyth is the author of “Spin Sisters: How the Women of the Media Sell Unhappiness – and Liberalism – to the Women of America.” She lives in New York City. Winston was the first female head of the White House Office of Speechwriting for President George H.W. Bush. She lives in Washington, D.C.

Please consider buying a copy of this book – it is an amazing guide to helping people instill patriotism in our children. Find it at http://www.howtoraiseanamerican.com/.

Marijo Tinlin is the Editor in Chief of Family First, one of the oldest family-oriented websites on the internet. She is also the author of a book about patriotism and teaching our children to love this country called “How to Raise an American Patriot, Making it Okay for Our Kids to Be Proud to Be American.”  It features 13 interviews with patriotic Americans including Ed Meese, Erick Erickson and Jackie Gingrich Cushman. It’s available at www.raisinganamericanpatriot.com.

With the revisionist history that abounds, many times, our children only learn about the most recent of the great black Americans who have blessed this country with their hard work and sacrifice, such as Martin Luther King Jr.

This is an unfortunate oversight about our nation’s black heritage.  In another book from Wallbuilders, written by Dr. David Barton called “American History in Black and White,” he details some of the amazing African American leaders we had in the early years of this country that we never hear about.

James Armistead helped make the 1781 victory at Yorktown possible. Peter Salem fought as a Minuteman and was a hero at the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775. Prince Whipple and Oliver Cromwell, both black, are pictured in the front of the famous painting depicting General George Washington crossing the Delaware on Christmas night.

Barton’s book makes note of so much black history that we never hear about. For example, he points out that the officers who arrived with the very first slave ship that came to the colonies in 1619 were imprisoned and all the captured slaves were returned to Africa.

If you listen to certain cable commentators who don’t know their history, you would think all 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were fierce supporters of slavery and owners of slaves. Not true. Samuel Adams, Stephen Hopkins, Benjamin Rush, Elbridge Gerry, James Wilson, John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin, John Witherspoon and many others were staunchly against slavery.

Our nation’s first black senator was Hiram Rhodes Revels, a minister from Mississippi. Ironically, he took the seat once held by Jefferson Davis, who served as the President of the Confederate States of America.

At that time, there were more blacks than whites living in Mississippi, and they voted overwhelmingly Republican. In fact, at the time, they could only find one black Democrat – imagine that now. The rise of the Ku Kux Klan came from Democrats not wishing the black Republicans to cast votes in the states, according to the facts presented in Barton’s book.

Josiah Walls of Florida was forced to serve in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. He was eventually captured by the North and, upon his release, he immediately joined the Union forces and went on to become an officer. He was twice elected to the House of Representatives but his election was challenged both times by Florida Democrats. Once, he prevailed and returned but the second time, the Democrats had gained the House back in Florida and he was forced to relinquish his seat.

South Carolina’s Robert Brown Elliott was highly educated and was able to read in four languages. He sponsored civil rights bills that were vigorously challenged by the Democrats and eventually served at Speaker of the House in the State legislature.

So many heroes and ground-breakers.  I hope you will take the time to read Barton’s book or at least find out more about these and the other early American black leaders. Check out other fantastic books about our founding history at www.wallbuilders.com.

Today, May 30, 1868, was the first wide observation of Memorial Day but why? So summer could start? So we could have a barbeque and go on vacation?

My grandmother used to call it by its original name – Decoration Day, because that’s the day you decorate the graves of family members who have passed. As a kid, I used to think it was called that because we decorated our house by flying the flag.

Memorial Day started to observe the fallen from the Civil War. It began in several places, both in the North and South, including New York, Mississippi, Virginia, Illinois and Pennsylvania, before it became widespread.

Major General John A. Logan issued a proclamation that this day would honor the dead and eventually, became the day to remember anyone fallen in any American war.

In a tradition called “Flags-In” the 3^rd U.S. Infantry (the soldiers who guard Arlington 24/7) puts small flags on each one of the 250,000 graves at Arlington National Cemetery on the Thursday before Memorial Day. They then patrol the entire cemetery for the whole weekend to make sure all the flags stay put.

Here Rests In

Honored Glory

An American

Soldier

Known But To God

Watching the changing of the guard at the tomb is a sobering sight and one of the most memorable from when I visited there as a goofy 8^th grader, years ago.

“The sight before us is that of a strong and good nation that stands in silence and remembers those who were loved and who, in return, loved their countrymen enough to die for them,” President Ronald Reagan said during his speech there in 1982.

Interestingly, there are tombs for the unidentified soldiers of World War I, World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. However, according to page 190 of The American Patriot’s Almanac by William Bennett and John T.E. Cribb, all the remains of the soldiers from Vietnam have been identified from DNA testing done in 1998 and is now empty.

Flags are supposed to fly at half-staff from morning until noon today and at 3:00 local time, everyone is asked to pause and take a moment for remembrance.

“Many of (our) soldiers will spend this Memorial Day in the mountains of Afghanistan or in the deserts of Iraq and Libya far from their families and friends. Their sacrifice and courage should remind us of our commitment to support them not just today.

The freedoms we enjoy are paid for by those we honor, both the fallen and those still fighting. Our nation is truly thankful,” Edwin J. Feulner, president of The Heritage Foundation wrote in the Morning Bell update this morning. Here is the link to The Heritage Foundation’s podcast about the history of Memorial Day.

Of course, we’re talking about the Civil war, truly America’s darkest chapter. Men were killed literally in my northwest Arkansas back yard nearly 150 years ago, and the damage caused by this schism took many, many years to gloss over.
Today’s FamilyFirst pick is called The Civil War Home Page, and it’s all about everything that is related to the infamous war between the states.
It’s loaded with photos, historical documents, and knowledge.
If you need info on the war, today’s FamilyFirst pick is your place. Keep it bookmarked.
http://www.civil-war.net/

Today’s site is a cyber location that can help a visitor capture some of the magic of “going down to the sea in ships”, and heading for points unknown. It is called The Mariner’s Museum, which is located in Newport News, Virginia. This is the online site for an actual museum, where you can look at maritime artifacts from all over the world. There are pictures of Titanic remnants, nautical prints, navigational aids, maps, everything that was used on a ship. There is an extensive library, as well as exhibits on lighthouses, pirates, and a maritime album with 100 pictures and their related stories. Their current feature site is about the USS Monitor, an American ship from the Civil War, and the first ironclad ship in history.
So the next time you want to go down to the sea, just click on your mouse, and weigh anchor for this site. It is a great treat for landlubbers, cyber or otherwise.
http://www.mariner.org/

Today’s Family First site is one such site. Entitled An Illinois Soldier in the Civil War, it is the story of one Jefferson Moses, a volunteer in Company G, 93rd Regiment, Illinois Volunteers. He was, by all accounts, a normal everyday citizen who did what was expected of him. What he has left is a diary of his enlistment, along with some pictures and documents. It is fascinating to read his accounts of events that have happened so long ago, yet are so fresh in his mind. This makes for very interesting reading, since he does not have the ability of knowing what the outcome of the events he is involved will be. It is this aspect of the diary alone that gives the up close and personal feel that this website has. Comtemporary accounts such of these from the Civil War show the sacrifices that were made to advance the freedoms that we enjoy today.
Studying the history of your family can be very rewarding, as this site shows. Imagine using this site as a beginning to explore your own genealogy. There are many excellent programs available, many that can help you get your information uploaded to the world wide web. Enjoy your stop here today, and come back often.

http://www.ioweb.com/civilwar/

Today’s Family Site is one such site. Entitled An Illinois Soldier in the Civil War, it is the story of one Jefferson Moses, a volunteer in Company G, 93rd Regiment, Illinois Volunteers. He was, by all accounts, a normal everyday citizen who did what was expected of him. What he has left is a diary of his enlistment, along with some pictures and documents. It is fascinating to read his accounts of events that have happened so long ago, yet are so fresh in his mind. This makes for very interesting reading, since he does not have the ability of knowing what the outcome of the events he is involved will be. It is this aspect of the diary alone that gives the up close and personal feel that this website has. Enjoy your stop.

http://www.ioweb.com/civilwar/

Today’s FamSite is one such site. Entitled An Illinois Soldier in the Civil War, it is the story of one Jefferson Moses, a volunteer in Company G, 93rd Regiment, Illinois Volunteers. He was, by all accounts, a normal everyday citizen who did what was expected of him. What he has left is a diary of his enlistment, along with some pictures and documents. It is fascinating to read his accounts of events that have happened so long ago, yet are so fresh in his mind. This makes for very interesting reading, since he does not have the ability of knowing what the outcome of the events he is involved will be. It is this aspect of the diary alone that gives the up close and personal feel that this website has. Enjoy your stop.

http://www.ioweb.com/civilwar/

Today’s FamSite is one such site. Entitled An Illinois Soldier in the Civil War, it is the story of one Jefferson Moses, a volunteer in Company G, 93rd Regiment, Illinois Volunteers. He was, by all accounts, a normal everyday citizen who did what was expected of him. What he has left is a diary of his enlistment, along with some pictures and documents. It is fascinating to read his accounts of events that have happened so long ago, yet are so fresh in his mind. This makes for very interesting reading, since he does not have the ability of knowing what the outcome of the events he is involved will be. It is this aspect of the diary alone that gives the up close and personal feel that this website has. Enjoy your stop.

http://www.ioweb.com/civilwar/

So our tour starts today with a visit to a site that honors not only one of our most famous presidents, but one of our most famous army generals as well.

The site is called Grant’s Cabin, a visit to one of the homes of President and Mrs. U. S. Grant, located near St. Louis, Missouri. This is a restored building, and is part of a larger site called Grant’s Farm, a wildlife preserve and historical site. President Grant once farmed the land in the 1850′s, before he was called back into the army to lead our forces through the Civil War. Here you can learn a bit about his life, and the land that he lived in.

The leaders of our nation are as varied as the population from which we elect them. The visits that we are making to the sites that honor them show that. Enjoy your stop here today, and share it with a friend. And be sure to return tomorrow for another site related to the leaders of our country.

http://www.grantsfarm.com/docs/cabin.htm