Greater than 1,000 service members got here out to Arlington Nationwide
Cemetery within the predawn chill, hoisted backpacks overflowing with pink,
white and blue, and headed off by way of the infinite rows of headstones.

Their mission Thursday was to plant tons of of hundreds of small
American flags on the graves of the nation’s fallen heroes – and to
inaugurate a weekend of remembrance.

“It’s guaranteeing that our service to the nation on this cemetery
continues in a bigger sense,” mentioned Military Capt. D.J. Taylor, who was amongst
these planting flags.

“It’s ensuring that for Memorial Day, we take into consideration these mates
that we’ve misplaced in fight, their private tales, and we guarantee for
their households that we spend this time with reflection, guaranteeing that
their sacrifice issues right here,” he mentioned.

Taylor is regimental headquarters firm commander for the third
Infantry Regiment, historically often known as the Previous Guard, the Military’s
official ceremonial unit. Certainly one of its duties is that this annual “flags-in” ceremony, which planted greater than 267,000 American flags Thursday.

Taylor’s firm aimed to plant as much as 30,000 flags in 4 hours.

Some troopers walked in teams, pulling flags from their backpacks
and planting them with army effectivity, every flag an actual
boot-length from every gravestone. Troopers replenished one another’s
backpacks as they ran low.

Different troopers labored alone, lingering as they moved by way of the rows and pausing for a couple of additional moments at each.

The ceremony is private for Taylor, whose great-uncle is buried at Arlington and could have a flag positioned at his gravestone.

“I feel it’s fairly particular to make sure that for my household,
personally, that you realize, in a really small approach his grave is taken care
of,” Taylor mentioned. “It issues.”

Taylor mentioned the ceremony is a approach for him to pay it ahead, understanding
that some day somebody may very well be putting a flag at his gravestone.

“For me, it’s in a really small approach, the flexibility to say thanks to, finally, a member of somebody’s household,” he mentioned.

Previous Guard
Workers Sgt. Robin Barnhill was again Thursday for her second yr at
flags-in, to pay tribute and provides due to the fallen heroes buried in
the cemetery. The ceremony is without doubt one of the Previous Guard’s obligations, a
responsibility the North Carolina native doesn’t take flippantly.

She described the expertise as humbling.

“With Memorial Day approaching, I do know lots of people they simply
benefit from the lengthy weekend, additional break day, or no matter,” Barnhill mentioned. “I
assume it’s essential simply to recollect at the back of your head why we
have this, you realize, it wasn’t given. It was earned, and everybody out
right here that’s buried within the Arlington Nationwide Cemetery, it’s due to them.”