Americans who have died in the nation's wars are not just names on a memorial or a number in an accounting of the fallen, but they were, as Richard Gebhard, past commander of Bel Air American Legion Post 39 put it, "real people, with real families who lived in real communities."
Gebhard, who gave the welcoming remarks during Bel Air's Memorial Day ceremony in Shamrock Park, said those who have died are still missed by their children, spouses and parents, and Americans must be there for the survivors as they continue mourning.
"Americans must remember that freedom isn't free," he said.
People crowded under the shade trees along the edges of the park late Monday morning for a performance by the Bel Air Community Band, followed by the annual Memorial Day ceremony, which was put on by the Town of Bel Air and American Legion Post 39.
Retired Army Col. Bert L. Rice, who was a helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War, was the guest speaker.
"Vivid in my memory are the many friends whose names are engraved on the Vietnam War Memorial," Rice said, referring to the black granite wall on the National Mall in Washington D.C., on which the names of more than 58,000 U.S. service members who died in Vietnam are inscribed.
"For many, many years, I have been haunted with this question: 'Why are their names on the wall and not mine?' " Rice asked.
Rice said he expects veterans of every war must deal with the guilt of surviving when their comrades did not.
He noted post-traumatic stress disorder is manifested in many forms in veterans, including substance abuse, self-isolation, depression and suicide. Rice works at Fort Meade, and he said five service members assigned to the Anne Arundel County Army post have taken their own lives during the past year.
Rice said he keeps going because of the support of family, friends and various veterans' organizations, as well as his faith in God, "who I feel has blessed me and my family every day."
"Every day I thank God for another day of life and remember those who can no longer enjoy life," he said.
Rice also touched on the "service and sacrifice" from people who are willing to join the military and risk their lives for their country, and he said they are "part of our traditional values" in America.
"Service is about rendering whatever one is able to, to make our homeland better," he said.
Adam Richardson and Ben Sprague, both seventh-graders are Southampton Middle School in Bel Air, read essays about what Memorial Day means to them.
Ben said he feels a personal responsibility to recognize the sacrifice made by service members who gave their lives.
"On Memorial Day, one should never pass up or reject the opportunity to mourn for men and women who died fighting in America's wars, because we all owe it to them," he said.
Adam talked about his grandfather's and great uncle's service during World War II, and how he and his parents and siblings travel to a veterans' cemetery or attend a local ceremony for Memorial Day each year.
"This is very special to me because I get to spend time with my family, and it teaches me to honor deceased service members," he said.
Richard Mathias, who traveled from Frederick County to see his grandson, Ben, read his essay, served as a Navy Seabee during the Vietnam War. The Seabees build facilities and infrastructure in combat zones and civilian areas.
"It's hard for our children to understand what it means to be truly free, to wake up every morning and be free to do what we want to do," he said.
Mathias said it was "amazing" for his grandson "to express his feelings on what Memorial Day really means."
Members of the Jarrettsville Young Marines, who are sponsored by the Marine Corps League, as well as Jarrettsville VFW Post 8672, formed an honor guard as representatives of local veterans' organizations placed honor wreaths below the stage of the William A. Humbert Amphitheater.
"It means a lot to all of us, because we all have family who are prior service members, and it meant a lot to show that respect to them," Young Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Nalls, of Joppa, said.
Nalls said his mother has served as a Navy corpsman, or combat medic.
Young Marine Cpl. Aaron Pfarr, of Bel Air, said his great uncle died during World War II, and his grandfather has told him many stories about his great uncle.
"He told me just to respect the fallen and memorialize them, but continue on and live in their memory," Pfarr said of his grandfather.