Northwestern honored fallen service members Monday during the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps’s Memorial Day ceremony.
Dressed in their summer whites, 20 members of NU’s NROTC performed a 20-minute ceremony at the veterans memorial in front of Norris University Center.
The ceremony honored the service members from NU’s NROTC as well as the men and women who have died fighting for the United States throughout history, Color Guard Commander Brett Sick said.
“I think it’s always important to remember the people who have gone before us, especially the ones who have given their lives,” said Sick, a Weinberg sophomore.
The NU ceremony followed a larger ceremony at the Evanston Veterans Memorial at Fountain Square, 1700 Sherman Ave. The salutes reminded people of the ongoing sacrifices made by service members, Logistics Officer Nathanael McLaughlin said.
“It’s a reminder that people are continuing fighting and dying for this country,” said McLaughlin, a McCormick sophomore. “It’s a good thing to remember as you’re enjoying your freedom as an American.”
About 40 spectators watched in silence as the NROTC Color Guard presented the United States flag, the United States Navy flag and the United States Marine Corps flag while the National Anthem played from speakers. Members then laid a wreath on the memorial and read the names of the 23 members of NU’s NROTC who died in World War II and the three who died in the Vietnam War.
Seven NROTC members then fired a 21-gun salute. The practice of firing gun salutes originated from ships entering friendly ports to signal that their cannons were unloaded, said Battalion Commander Craig Miller, a McCormick junior. On Monday, the national 21-gun salute honored the members of the NU community who have given their lives in service, he said.
At the end of the ceremony, there was a moment of silence as a trumpeter played “Taps,” a traditional song that is meant to close military funerals.
The ceremony was a sobering reminder of the realities of naval service, McLaughlin said.
“I know being in ROTC, this ceremony really brings it home to me and to others that the business we’re going into is one where people die,” he said. “It’s a dangerous job.”
The ceremony is also a reminder of the current war in Iraq that service members are fighting, Miller said.
“It definitely brings it closer to home that we’re fighting a war right now,” he said. “It’s important for us to pause and remember what’s going on in the world.”
