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LEWISTON — Alan Gregory, retired Army officer and former chief financial officer at the American Battle Monuments Commission and at Arlington National Cemetery, was the presenter at the Friday, Jan. 13, LA Senior College Food for Thought session held in Room 170 of the USM-LA Campus. The title of his presentation was “Final Resting Place” in which he shared very powerful slides and stories of the many veteran cemeteries around the world.
Gregory began his session with a powerful quote from Pierre Claeyssens (1909-2003), who was an architect and philanthropist: “To be killed in war is not the worse that can happen. To be lost is not the worse – to be forgotten is the worse.”
This quote summarizes the commitment the military has worked toward achieving that no soldier will be forgotten since Abraham Lincoln signed legislation on July 16, 1862, for the federal government to purchase land dedicated for cemeteries for the soldiers who would die in the service of their country. Today, 4.3 million soldiers and families are buried in national cemeteries throughout the world.
The mast of The USS Maine was dedicated on Feb. 15, 1915, in Arlington National Cemetery with the rallying cry “Remember the Maine; to hell with Spain” from the 1898 Spanish American War.
Other Maine connections at Arlington National Cemetery include 122 Medal of Honor recipients and recognition for Morrill Worcester from Worcester Wreath in Harrington and founder of Wreaths Across America. Please plan to join us for our February Food for Thought presentation when Anne Cardale, program director for the Maine Senior College Network, and others will demonstrate the first-ever online, statewide video conference Senior College class on Feb. 10.
