HOUSTON — A Memorial Day Observance to honor fallen service members will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, May 27, at Houston National Cemetery, 10410 Veterans Memorial Drive.

“Memorial Day allows us to remember our fallen heroes: our fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters who have selflessly served our nation,” said Houston National Cemetery Director Roy Luera. “As men and women continue to risk their lives around the world, we pause to remember the legacy of excellence of America’s service members.”

Memorial Day, formerly known as Decoration Day, was first enacted to honor troops who died in the Civil War. It was extended after World War I to honor all deceased Veterans.

“At VA, we honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice by providing them with a perpetual memorial in our national cemeteries,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “And we also care for their survivors, whether during war or peacetime. It is a profound and personal commitment for every one of us at VA.”

The Houston VA National Cemetery was dedicated Dec. 7, 1965, and now encompasses some 419 acres of a former dairy farm in northwest Houston. The cemetery’s focal point and the site of all special observances is the horseshoe-shaped building at its center known as the Hemicycle. It is its largest memorial and the most visible structure on the landscape. It is the only VA National Cemetery Administration-managed hemicycle memorial and is one of only three known hemicycles located in national cemeteries.

The Memorial Day Observance is free and open to the public.

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