Across the country and around the world, the graves of America’s war dead are being prepared for Memorial Day commemorations.
In Los Angeles, more than 6,000 Scouts arrived the Los Angeles National Cemetery on Saturday to place American flags at the graves of veterans in a ceremony ahead of Memorial Day on Monday.
The participants included Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Cub Scouts. Organizers say 88,000 flags were placed in tribute.
Each uniformed scout placed a flag by one of the graves and solemnly saluted.
A Girl Scout salutes after placing a flag at a veteran’s gravestone at the Los Angeles National Cemetery on Saturday
Boy Scout troop 10 from the Reseda section of Los Angeles offers a salute at the Los Angeles National Cemetery
More than 6,000 Scouts, with the support of local community members, placed 88,000 American flags in Los Angeles
A Boy Scout runs between the grave stones after helping place flags at the Los Angeles National Cemetery on Saturday
Boy Scouts Sharukh Lal, left and Michael Thorne walk through the Los Angeles National Cemetery after helping place flags
WWII veteran Jimmy Weldon poses for a photo during a ceremony at the Los Angeles National Cemetery on Saturday
Similar scenes played out across the nation on Saturday, as Scouts turned out to honor dead veterans.
At Mountain Home National Cemetery in Johnson City, Tennessee, where over 15,000 are buried, hundreds of Scouts arrived to place a flag by each grave marker.
In Texas, BSA Troop 8787 followed its 20-year tradition of visiting the Cook-Walden Capital Parks Cemetery in Pflugerville to place about 5,000 flags on graves to honor veterans.
In Mississippi, volunteers also honored those who died in service to their country at the Natchez National Cemetery.
There, he placed flowers at the grave of his grandfather’s unit commander in World War I, US Marine Corps Lt. Carleton Burr.
Small American Flags are placed at the graves of veterans at Mountain Home National Cemetery in Johnson City, Tennessee
Nathan Gass, 14, of BSA Troop 8787, places a flag at the Cook-Walden Capital Parks Cemetery in Texas on Saturday
Volunteers place US flags in front of tombstones on Saturday at the Natchez National Cemetery in Natchez, Mississippi
Former President George W. Bush (right) joined fellow veterans for a pancake breakfast in Maine on Saturday
Former President George W. Bush marked the occasion by joining other veterans for a pancake breakfast at American Legion Post 159 in Kennebunkport, Maine
In Europe, similar scenes played out in the cemeteries were thousands of US soldiers who died in WWII are buried.
At the Ardennes cemetery in Neuville-en-Condroz, Belgium a ceremony was held in memory of the US troops who fought in the Battle of the Bulge.
Roughly 19,000 American soldiers died in the battle, Germany’s last major offensive of WWII. Most of the 5,329 buried at Ardennes were casualties in the battle.
In Belleau, France, Mark Shively traveled from Beaverton, Oregon to visit the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery on Saturday.
Mark Shively, from Oregon, leaves flowers at the grave of his grandfathers unit commander, World War I US Marine Corps Lt. Carleton Burr, during Memorial Day weekend at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in Belleau, France
Shively shows a photo of his grandfather, World War I Marine Corps Private Norman Alfred Roberts, as he leaves flowers at the grave of his grandfather’s unit commander who died after helping Roberts survive the Battle of Belleau Wood
A ceremony in tribute to US soldiers who died during WWII is held at the Ardennes cemetery in Neuville-en-Condroz, Belgium
Color bearers on Saturday paid tribute to US war dead at the Ardennes cemetery, where 5,329 US soldiers are buried
Burr was killed in nearby Vierzy, France in July 1918. His heroism a month before he died allowed Shively’s grandfather, Marine Corps Pvt. Norman Albert Roberts, to escape the Battle of Belleau Wood alive.
Roberts was wounded in the battle but made it home to America alive before the war ended.
Shively’s grandfather Marine Corps Pvt. Norman Albert Roberts, was wounded during the Battle of Belleau Wood in June of 1918, but made it home to America before the war ended.
The battle in northern France pitted untested US forces against the more-experienced Germans, who were making a push toward Paris. It became a defining moment in the first World War, proving the Americans’ military mettle and helping turn the tide of the war.
With Memorial Day weekend signalling the unofficial start of summer in much of the US, the observations were not all entirely somber and many took to the beaches.
The US Navy’s Blue Angles performed a precision flight demonstration over Jones Beach on Long Island on Saturday
In a rare occurrence, the six-plane squadron was joined by Blue Angel 7, which took this breathtaking picture from the air
Beachgoers crowded the shore at Long Island’s Jones Beach to see the Blue Angels perform on Saturday
Flying at up to 700mph, the squadron of F/A-18 Hornets come as close as 18 inches apart at times
The Blue Angels are seen performing a stunning maneuver over Jones Beach State Park on Saturday
The Blue Angels performed as part of Bethpage Federal Credit Union Air Show and will do a second show on Sunday
Spectators watch from the beach on Long Island as the Blue Angles fly over in an ultra-tight diamond formation
On Long Island, beaches opened for the season and crowds flocked to see the Navy’s Blue Angels perform stunning flight demonstrations.
Flying at up to 700mph, the squadron of F/A-18 Hornets come as close as 18 inches apart at times as they demonstrate precision flight techniques.
In a rare occurrence, the six-plane squadron was joined by Blue Angel 7, which took breathtaking pictures of the show from the air.
The Blue Angels will perform for a second day on Sunday, as part of the Bethpage Federal Credit Union Air Show.