Memorial Day Is More Than a Day of Remembrance
- Dr. Simone Lundquist
- Jul 9
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 31
Every Memorial Day, Americans gather in cemeteries, parks, memorials, and town squares across the country to honor the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our nation.
We place flags beside headstones. We attend ceremonies. We pause for moments of silence.
We remember those who never came home.
But Memorial Day also invites us to reflect on a difficult truth: the cost of war does not always end when the fighting stops.
As Dr. Simone Lundquist shared during Open Doors to Future Possibilities' Memorial Day ceremony in Los Gatos:
"The cost of war is never truly paid when the guns go silent."
For many veterans, the transition home can become its own battle.
Service members spend weeks, months, and sometimes years preparing for military service. Yet when they leave the military, there is often no roadmap for navigating civilian life. They return carrying experiences most Americans will never fully understand—memories of sacrifice, loss, responsibility, and the profound bonds formed alongside those who served beside them.
Many carry the memory of friends who never made it home. Others struggle with the loss of the camaraderie, purpose, and connection that military service provided. For some, reconnecting with family, friends, and community can be unexpectedly difficult.
The numbers tell part of that story.
According to the Department of Defense data, approximately 7,000 American service members lost their lives during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan following the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Yet the impact of those conflicts continues long after combat operations have ended.
Research cited by veteran advocacy organizations estimates that more than 140,000 veterans have died by suicide since the beginning of the post-9/11 wars. More recently, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reported that 6,398 veterans died by suicide in 2023—an average of approximately 17.5 veterans each day.
Today, tens of thousands of veterans experience homelessness, while many others struggle with poverty, social isolation, substance use disorders, unemployment, and barriers to accessing the support they need.
These statistics are important.
But Memorial Day is ultimately about people, not numbers.
It is about the young service member who never returned home.
The Gold Star family who carries that loss every day.
The veteran quietly struggling with memories no one else can see.
The military spouse who stood beside them through deployments, uncertainty, and sacrifice.
Their stories remind us that honoring service requires more than remembrance.
It requires action.
One of the most meaningful ways we can honor those we have lost is by caring for the veterans who are still with us.
Check in on a veteran. Listen without judgment. Create opportunities for connection and belonging. Support programs that help veterans access resources, build community, and rediscover purpose.
This belief is at the heart of Open Doors to Future Possibilities.
Every day, our team works alongside veterans and their families by providing counseling, housing assistance, employment support, digital literacy training, resource navigation, community events, and opportunities to reconnect with a sense of purpose and belonging.
We believe that no veteran should feel forgotten.
Let us remember those who gave everything in service to our nation. Let us honor their sacrifice not only through ceremony, but through compassion.
May we honor their memory by caring for one another, supporting those who served, and helping build the stronger, kinder, and more united nation they fought to protect.
To watch Dr. Simone’s 2026 Memorial Day Speech: https://youtu.be/um3GjNFixOo?si=k1ObLwOzK4bP-Nvi
