I would like to thank Professor Polk and Commander Ruff for providing me with the opportunity and privilege to be a part of this ceremony today.

Memorial Day holds a great significance for me. I reflect upon my heritage, as my ancestors formed a long line of American heroes. My grandfather, Robert Dooley, served in the U.S. Navy during World War II with his two brothers: Roger, who served in the Army Signal Corps in the South Pacific and John, in the Navy in the North Pacific, off the coast of China. My two great-great uncles, Norman and Percy Dooley, both graduates of Annapolis Naval Academy, served during World War I and my great-great-great grandfather Isaac Winston Dabney volunteered in the Civil War. His father, Richard Dabney, served in the War of 1812, and Richard’s father was a Patriot of the American Revolution. All served with honor and distinction.

 
They are among the many that have risen to the challenge of protecting the freedoms we now enjoy in America.

 
By their brave service, these soldiers have proven their commitment to America’s freedom. In our country, we place a high value upon freedom – freedom of speech, freedom of belief, freedom to assemble and all of the other freedoms embodied in our Constitution. We have been privileged to enjoy these freedoms for the past two centuries. But, we must not become complacent and allow these freedoms to erode. The fight for freedom does not only refer to the American Revolution, the Civil War and the world wars in the past - it’s a struggle to this very day. We, too, need to be constantly vigilant to maintain our precious liberties both within and without our borders.

Each generation is responsible to guard the ideals of freedom and to keep the flame of liberty alive for the next generation.

As family, you have given a great sacrifice: your sons and daughters, your husbands and wives and loved ones. The knowledge of your support and love helped to carry them through the difficult times. Today - Memorial Day - is the day that we pause to reflect on the enormity of the sacrifice made by those who have defended our nation’s values

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A poem entitled “Freedom Isn’t Free” by Kelly Strong surely expresses the true cost of freedom. This poem talks about a young, brave Marine whom the author observes. She stops to wonder how many men like him

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“Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers' tears?
How many pilots' planes shot down?
How many died at sea?
How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?
No, freedom isn’t free.”

In the words of Abraham Lincoln, in his speech in memory of the fallen Gettysburg soldiers nearly 150 years ago, I quote:

“It is for us, the living, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they have, thus far, so nobly carried on.

It is for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us - that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain.”

One of the best ways that we can do that is by honoring our soldiers on Memorial Day. We must retell their stories. These men and women are our heroes and we will remember them in the future. They are our examples. While we enjoy our freedom here in America, we must never forget the courage of our veterans. We must never forget their sacrifice. We must never forget. . . .that freedom isn’t free.