Brad Maestas visits the gravestone of his father Sgt. First Class Virgil D Young at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. His father was a veteran of both the Korea and Vietnam wars. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
Micah Antony, 7, left, and her brother Ethan, 11, keep dry with slickers and an umbrella as they visit loved ones, with their parents Paul and Julienne, not pictured, buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)- Mark Leach touches the gravestone of his wife Edie’s parents and brother at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Wendy Jennings, right, alongside her 99 year old WWII veteran father Alfred Jennings, left, places flowers on the gravestones of their loved ones at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. Jennings was a marine in WWII. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Lee Stephens kisses her hand to leave on the gravestone of her son Dane Stephens at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. Stephens was killed, at the age of 19, when the plane he was aboard crashed in Gander Newfoundland on Dec. 12, 1985. The plane was carrying U.S. Army personnel from Cairo, Egypt, to their home base in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, via Cologne, West Germany, and Gander, Newfoundland. On the morning of Thursday, 12 Dec. 1985, shortly after takeoff from Canada's Gander International Airport en route to Fort Campbell, the McDonnell Douglas DC-8 serving the flight stalled, crashed, and burned about half a mile from the runway, killing all 248 passengers and 8 crew members on board. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- The gravestone of Sgt Dane Stephens with flowers placed next to it by his mother Lee Stephens at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. Stephens was killed, at the age of 19, when the plane he was aboard crashed in Gander Newfoundland on Dec. 12, 1985. The plane was carrying U.S. Army personnel from Cairo, Egypt, to their home base in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, via Cologne, West Germany, and Gander, Newfoundland. On the morning of Thursday, 12 Dec. 1985, shortly after takeoff from Canada's Gander International Airport en route to Fort Campbell, the McDonnell Douglas DC-8 serving the flight stalled, crashed, and burned about half a mile from the runway, killing all 248 passengers and 8 crew members on board. The cemetery will host a Memorial Day service on Monday at 11:00. The public is invited. Memorial Day is a day to honor and remember those who have died while serving in the United States military. It's observed on the last Monday of May and is a time for reflection and remembrance. It began as a way to decorate the graves of Civil War soldiers. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Lillina Kuburry stays dry under an unbrella as she searches for relatives buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Visitors bring flowers to place on the gravestones of their loved ones at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Each grave stone has a small American Flag placed in front of it at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- A visitor walks around the grounds at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Canada Geese look as though they are paying their respects to the fallen as they walk alongside the gravestones at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Visitors have a solemn moment near the gravestones of their loved ones at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Visitors bring flowers to place on the gravestones of their loved ones at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Charlene Minjarez wipes away a tear while visiting the gravestone of her husband Jose Phil Minjarez at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. Her husband served in both the Army and the Navy during the Vietnam War. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Deona Barr, center, and her kids Emma, left, and RJ, right, look for the gravestone of Barr’s father-in-law Robert Barr who was an army lieutenant in Vietnam at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. His father was a veteran of both the Korea and Vietnam wars. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
- Brad Maestas visits the gravestone of his father Sgt. First Class Virgil D Young at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. His father was a veteran of both the Korea and Vietnam wars. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
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Brad Maestas visits the gravestone of his father Sgt. First Class Virgil D Young at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025. His father was a veteran of both the Korea and Vietnam wars. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
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By Helen H. Richardson | hrichardson@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: | UPDATED:
Getting your player ready...
Visitors paid their respects for loved ones at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 25, 2025.
Hundreds of volunteers with Flags for Fallen Vets helped place flags on every single grave marker of fallen vets and their family members for the weekends events. Amber Schoenrock, lead coordinator for the organization, said this year they placed 109,000 flags costing $10,000 to do. They rely on volunteers to help them place the flags as well as pick up the flags after the long holiday.
Memorial Day is a day to honor and remember those who have died while serving in the United States military. It’s observed on the last Monday of May and is a time for reflection and remembrance. It began as a way to decorate the graves of Civil War soldiers.
