Midwest Chick's Place

Memorial Day is our Nation’s solemn
reminder that freedom is never free.  It is a moment of collective
reflection on the noble sacrifices of those who gave the last measure of
devotion in service of our ideals and in the defense of our Nation.  On
this ceremonious day, we remember the fallen, we pray for a lasting
peace among nations, and we honor these guardians of our inalienable
rights.  

This year, we commemorate the
centennial anniversary of America’s entry into World War I.  More than
4.7 million Americans served during The Great War, representing more
than 25 percent of the American male population between the ages of 18
and 31 at the time.  We remember the more than 100,000 Americans who
sacrificed their lives during “The War to End All Wars,” and who left
behind countless family members and loved ones.  We pause again to pray
for the souls of those heroes who, one century ago, never returned home
after helping to restore peace in Europe.

On Memorial Day we honor the final
resting places of the more than one million men and women who sacrificed
their lives for our Nation, by decorating their graves with the stars
and stripes, as generations have done since 1868.  We also proudly fly
America’s beautiful flag at our homes, businesses, and in our community
parades to honor their memory.  In doing so, we pledge our Nation’s
allegiance to the great cause of freedom for which they fought and
ultimately died.

In honor and recognition of all of our
fallen service members, the Congress, by a joint resolution approved May
11, 1950, as amended (36 U.S.C. 116), has requested the President issue
a proclamation calling on the people of the United States to observe
each Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and designating
a period on that day when the people of the United States might unite
in prayer.  The Congress, by Public Law 106-579, has also designated
3:00 p.m. local time on that day as a time for all Americans to observe,
in their own way, the National Moment of Remembrance.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP,
President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Memorial
Day, May 29, 2017, as a day of prayer for permanent peace, and I
designate the hour beginning in each locality at 11:00 a.m. of that day
as a time when people might unite in prayer.  I urge the press, radio,
television, and all other information media to cooperate in this
observance.

I further ask all Americans to observe the National Moment of Remembrance beginning at 3:00 p.m. local time on Memorial Day.  

I also request the Governors of the
United States and its Territories, and the appropriate officials of all
units of government, to direct that the flag be flown at half-staff
until noon on this Memorial Day on all buildings, grounds, and naval
vessels throughout the United States and in all areas under its
jurisdiction and control.  I also request the people of the United
States to display the flag at half-staff from their homes for the
customary forenoon period.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set
my hand this twenty-fourth day of May, in the year of our Lord two
thousand seventeen, and of the Independence of the United States of
America the two hundred and forty-first.