Memorial Day Weekend 2024: Parade, Wreath Laying, Ceremony In Prince George's County

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — The city of Bowie will host its annual Memorial Day parade Saturday to honor members of the Armed Services both past and present. There will be vendors on hand and the parade can be seen live on the Bowie government channel.

The parade steps off from the Belair Annex on Belair Drive at 11 a.m. and marches down Belair Drive, then turns right on Sussex Lane and will end at the corner of Sussex Lane and Stonybrook Drive. The reviewing stand will be on Sussex Lane near the intersection with Stonybrook Drive.

The top units in the parade will be recognized in a short ceremony at Acorn Hill Park following the parade. Judging categories are:

• Most Patriotic Marching Band
• Most Spirited Marching Band
• Best Vehicle
• Best Costume
• Best Non-Profit Float
• Best Commercial Float

The city of College Park will hold its annual Memorial Day observance Monday at 11 a.m. at the College Park Veterans Memorial at the intersection of Rt. 1 and Greenbelt Rd. The program will include music, speakers and wreath laying in tribute to the men and women who have served America. This year’s speaker will be Major James A. Dula, a retired former Air Force Commander who currently serves as the Veterans Affairs Officer for the Office of the County Executive in Prince George’s County. Residents are invited to take pictures of loved ones who are veterans both alive or passed to share on the Honors Table.

The city of District Heights will host a Memorial Day celebration Monday at 10 a.m. at the city's Veterans Park located at Kipling Parkway Spur and Marbury Drive.

The upcoming Memorial Day services across Prince George's County are part of a nearly 160-year tradition that pays tribute to military personnel who lost their lives in service to their country Memorial Day weekend, which runs May 25-27 this year.

As the observance has changed over the years, many families also use Memorial Day as an occasion to visit Prince George's County cemeteries and leave flowers at the graves of family members, regardless of whether they served in the military. Memorial Day Weekend is also the unofficial kickoff to summer.

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.