Walking among heroes: Ceremonies honor those who gave their lives for freedom
Published 11:41 am Monday, May 26, 2025
A lone rose rests upon pavers as visitors to the Veterans Memorial are reflected in their surfaces prior to Monday’s morning’s Memorial Day ceremony. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
A wreath waits to be dedicated during a Memorial Day ceremony at the Veterans Memorial in Austin. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
People walk among the pavers prior to Monday’s Memorial Day ceremony at the Veteran’s Memorial, which is in the finishing stages of the memorial’s renovation. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Everett DeYoung looks over the placed pavers at the Veterans Memorial Monday prior to Memorial Day ceremony. The memorial’s renovation is nearly complete and Monday’s ceremony marked the first one held at the new look. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Father Thien Nguyen gives the opening prayer during a Memorial Day ceremony Monday at the Veterans Memorial. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Amy Mayers dips her head in prayer during a Memorial Day ceremony Monday at the Veterans Memorial. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Mary Fargen stands attention during posting of colors Monday morning at a Memorial Day ceremony at the Veterans Memorial. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Members of the color guard stand at attention during a Monday morning Memorial Day ceremony at the Veteran’s Memorial. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Anthony Dunn gives a few words during a Memorial Day ceremony on Monday at Oakwood Cemetery. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Attendees to a Memorial Day ceremony at Oakwood Cemetery look on during the wreath dedication Monday. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The color guard stand and watch as wreaths were dedicated during a Memorial Day ceremony Monday at Oakwood Cemetery. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
A wreath dedicated to those lost at sea is released into the Cedar River, part of a string of Memorial Day ceremonies held Monday across Austin. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
A wreath dedicated to those lost at sea floats down the Cedar river toward Mill Pond following a Memorial Day ceremony Monday. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
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Austin VFW Post 1216 Adjutant Anthony Dunn touched on a very poignant point during his speech Monday morning at Oakwood Ceremony.
That Memorial Day wasn’t just one time a year, but something veterans carried with them throughout the year because some never had the chance to take their uniform off.
Simply put, Dunn said that veterans walked with heroes.
“What united them was a love of this country,” he said.
The stop was just one of many Memorial Day ceremonies going on throughout the county and area on Memorial Day and as in years past, it was about remembering the sacrifice of others to maintain the freedoms we have today.
“We the living have inherited the responsibility,” Dunn said. “Let us stand a little taller. Some died for that freedom.”
Earlier in the morning, retired Post Commander of 1216, Scott Wiechmann pointed to those attending these ceremonies as those who understand that very point.
“People who understand what Memorial Day is about are doing this today,” he said during a ceremony at the Veterans Memorial, which is nearing the end of a site renovation with new layout for the pavers enshrined there. “They paid that price so we could be here today. The price they paid was heavy.”
A ceremony was also held following the ceremony at Oakwood at the bridge on Fourth Street NE over the Cedar River. During that ceremony, a wreath was dropped in honor of those who died at sea.
Encompassing all of it were Wiechmann’s words toward the end of the ceremony at the Veterans Memorial.
“We ask that you remember the sacrifices made by these men and women,” he said. “This is a holy day, a sacred day. A day of honor.”
