Memorial Day Commemorated in NZ

Seven decades of U.S. Veterans in New Zealand commemorating their fallen comrades

The small group of American military veterans who have made their home in New Zealand will come together on Sunday May 30 to commemorate their fallen comrades in a wreath-laying ceremony at Auckland War Memorial Museum. The service – which marks the 62nd annual observance of U.S. Memorial Day in Auckland – will be attended by about 150 people, New Zealanders as well as Americans, many of whom will lay floral tributes at the World War II Memorial

The United States Consul General in Auckland will lead the commemoration, laying a wreath on behalf of the people of the United States of America. Invited guests will include American veterans, their widows and relatives, representatives from the New Zealand armed forces and of Auckland area Returned and Services’ Associations, and several local mayors. Also in attendance will be members of uniformed living history societies, who will arrive at the Museum in World War II-era military vehicles, and lay wreaths.

The commemoration has its roots in the American Civil War, with the spontaneous decoration of soldiers’ graves in towns and cities in both the North and South. The day has been officially observed since May 1868, when the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery were decked with flowers. In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a U.S. national holiday by an act of Congress. Further information on the history of Memorial Day is available at: http://www1.va.gov/opa/speceven/memday/history.asp#hist.

Where: WWII Hall of Memories, Top Floor, Auckland War Memorial Museum
Date: Sunday May 30, 2010
Time: 2:00PM start

Media should be at the WWII Hall of Memories, Top Floor, Auckland War Memorial Museum before 2:00PM. The uniformed re-enactors with their vehicles will be at the North Entrance from 1:00PM onwards.

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