Catholic cemeteries focus on those who gave their lives in service
SEATTLEBy Kim Haub
Memorial Day has become synonymous with sales and vacations, but local Catholic cemeteries are honoring fallen and living veterans to make sure it means more than that.
“It is important because we need to stop and honor those who served our county. We are enjoying the fruits of their sacrifice,” said Richard Peterson, director of Associated Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Seattle. And praying for the dead is a spiritual work of mercy, he said.
Special observances are planned at the four archdiocesan cemeteries: Gethsemane in Federal Way, Holyrood in Shoreline, Calvary in Seattle and St. Patrick in Kent.
At each cemetery, a large “tribute board” — 6 feet tall and 12-18 feet long — has been erected so people can write messages or prayers in honor of departed friends and relatives. The boards are available for two weeks.
“It is surprising how moving it is to see people put touching little tributes on the boards,” Peterson said. “Even those who don’t have relatives buried in our cemeteries come and remember their loved ones buried somewhere else.”
On Memorial Day, May 26, the four cemeteries will mark the day with Mass in English at 10:30 a.m. Veterans and active military personnel are invited to recite the intercessions, followed by a moment of silence. Each cemetery will have a wreath-laying ceremony and (except for St. Patrick Cemetery) a military honor guard.
Before Mass at each cemetery, a deacon who served in the military will offer a brief commentary. “It is moving for me as a deacon and a solider to honor our veterans,” said Deacon Roy Harrington, who will speak at Calvary Cemetery. “We don’t do enough to support our warriors, living and dead.”
Also in observance of Memorial Day, Gethsemane Cemetery will have a Mass in Vietnamese at 1 p.m. May 26 and Holyrood Cemetery will have a Vietnamese Mass at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 24, and a Mass in Korean at 1 p.m. Monday, May 26.
The local events are part of “Serving God and Country: A Memorial Day Salute to Our Heroes,” a program started in 2013 by the National Catholic Cemetery Conference. More than 1,000 cemeteries participated last year and more are expected to join the effort this year.
Dennis Fairbank, executive director of the national conference, said he is proud that the Catholic Church is “out in front” in preserving the traditional meaning of Memorial Day.
“The thing that really comes through, and I think moves me the most, is the appreciation of the families,” Fairbank said. “Spending time on the weekend for a Mass of remembrance means a great deal to them.”
May 20, 2014