Memorial Day Weekend 2023: Things To Do In Laguna Beach

LAGUNA BEACH, CA — The upcoming Memorial Day celebrations in Laguna Beach are a part of a nearly 160-year tradition that pays tribute to military personnel who lost their lives in service to their country.

In Laguna Beach, there are several ways to commemorate Memorial Day. Here's a rundown on Memorial Day celebrations in your town this year:

The Laguna Beach American Legion Post 222 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5868 will lead a Memorial Day Ceremony on Monday, May 29 at 11 a.m. at Monument Point in Heisler Park, with music starting at 10:30 a.m.

Residents looking for a bite to eat before the ceremony are encouraged to stop by the annual Laguna Beach Fire Department's Memorial Day Pancake Breakfast to meet, greet and eat with local firefighters.

Residents will enjoy pancakes, sausages, coffee, orange juice and maple syrup at $8 a person all prepared by Laguna Beach firefighters.

The pancake breakfast will be held from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and also takes place at Heisler Park, 375 Cliff Drive.

The Laguna JaZz Band and Laguna Community Concert Band will also commemorate the special day with a free Memorial Day Concert at the Cobblestones at Main Beach.

The jazz band, along with featured vocalist Ginger Hatfield, kicks things off at 11 a.m. The Laguna Community Concert Band will follow at 12:30 p.m., with vocalists Lisa Morrice and Gary Greene, plus special guest dancer Eliana Merritt.

As the observance has changed over the years, many families also use Memorial Day as an occasion to visit Orange County cemeteries and leave flowers at the graves of family members, regardless of whether they served in the military.

The history of Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, dates back to 1868, when Gen. John A. Logan called for a day of remembrance to honor the Northern lives lost amid battle during the Civil War that had ended just a few years earlier, according to History.com. As time passed, more and more people called it Memorial Day, and it became a federal holiday in 1971.

Waterloo, New York, is considered the birthplace of Memorial Day. The town’s observance on May 5, 1866, predated Logan’s call for a day of remembrance. Local businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers and flags.

Until World War I, the holiday honored only those soldiers who died while fighting for the Union in the War, as Southern states honored their war dead on a separate day. After the 116,000-plus American deaths in World War I, the tradition changed to remember all who have died while serving in the military.

Every year, a national moment of remembrance is held at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day. No matter where they are or what they’re doing, Americans are asked to pause for one minute in silence to remember military personnel who have given their lives in service to their country.
According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, the midday time was chosen because it’s a time when many Americans will be enjoying their freedoms on a national holiday.