DIXON, Calif. — Memorial Day is a time to honor those who died while serving in the United States armed forces.
Sacramento Valley National Cemetery held an event Saturday morning and will be cleaning gravesites and placing flags throughout the day.
The speaker for the service says Memorial Day is a time to remember and honor those who gave their "absolute all."
"Through their course of duty to the nation, we recognize the impact of their solemn oath to support and defend our republic and in keeping that promise paid the ultimate sacrifice," they said.
W.T Jean Pierre started his service in 1969. After a period of active duty, he said he missed the military so much he decided to join the reserves for 17 years.
“Memorial Day means coming in and actually visualizing the people that are here and coming and actually realizing the people that sacrificed their lives that means a lot to me,” said Jean Pierre.
Thomas Randall served four years with the army from 1977 to 1981 and then the Air Force from 1982 to 1986. He attended the event at the cemetery too.
“The moment we reflect on the words that freedom isn’t free,” said Randall.
Jack Pledger served from 1957 to 1985 as an Air Force flight engineer. He keeps track of all the men he served with at Travis Air Force Base and spends time at Sacramento Valley National Cemetery visiting over 100 sites to check in on the friends he served with.
“Thank you for the thank you. I didn’t get it when we came back I’ll tell you it was horrible but this today really gave me an uplift," said Pledger.