A service to honor the men and women of America’s armed forces who sacrificed all in the defense of the nation was held on Sunday afternoon on the steps of the Gloucester courthouse in front of the Gloucester Veterans Memorial Wall.

This year’s Memorial Day service was hosted by Middle Peninsula Detachment 1317 of the Marine Corps League, who had swapped heading up this year’s observance with American Legion Post 75, which in November will host the Veterans Day program, allowing Marine Corps League members to take part in the observance of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Marines on Nov. 10, 1775.

Commandant Dave Clements, who served as master of ceremonies, said that the program was being held to “honor the brave souls who laid down their lives to keep us free … not for glory, but for duty.” He urged those present to “teach your children their names … May God bless our fallen heroes.”

Gloucester High School senior Mary Ashton VanFossen opened the program by singing the National Anthem, as fellow GHS students, NJROTC cadets Khloe Rothenberger, Eleanor Patterson, Jakob Rothenberger and Elijah Holt served as the color guard, and also helped in the placing of wreaths.

The Rev. Dr. William A. Will, a retired Navy Admiral, was the day’s guest speaker. He began with a question for the Marines in attendance: What happened 18 days after the U.S. Marine Corps was established by Congress? That’s when the Navy Chaplain’s Corps was established, he said. What did the Marines do, Will joked, that 18 days later, Congress “had to appoint a God squad” to see to their spiritual well-being?

He spoke fondly of the Marines, having served six tours of duty with the Corps. He was very happy to have served in 1968 and 1969 in Vietnam, calling it the “richest year” in his 60 years of ministry.

“Memorial Day is not just a day off,” he said. “It is a very special day in the life of our nation … to pause and reflect on the friends … we often take for granted.”

“Our servicemen faced peril that we might know peace,” he said. Their “blood sacrifice” was not about glory or personal gain, “it was something much more significant—securing safety and liberty for future generations.”

To the family members of those fallen heroes, he said, “your loss is personal and it is profound. However, please be assured, it is not forgotten … Every fallen hero represents a loss for all.”

The wreaths being laid today, Will said, are “a small gesture, but it serves as a reminder of the immense debt we owe … May we always be grateful, not only today, but every day.”

Clements thanked Will and presented him with a Distinguished Service Award from the MCL and a challenge coin.

MCL chaplain John Seltzer delivered the benediction. He also made a joke about Will’s comment about the founding of the Navy Chaplain’s Corps. “If they’re going to make a bunch of jarheads in a bar,” he said, there needs to be someone to pray for them, referring to the founding of the Marine Corps at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia.

Sixteen wreaths were laid at the wall by the following organizations: American Legion Post 75, American Legion Auxiliary Unit 75, Sons of the American Legion Squadron 75, American Legion Riders Chapter 75, Gloucester County Republican Committee, Cub Scout Gloucester-Mathews Pack 133, Boy Scouts of Gloucester-Mathews Troop 133, Girl Scouts of Gloucester-Mathews Service Unit 130, Gloucester Veterans Memorial Committee, the Gloucester Ruritan Club, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8252, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 66, The Father Edmund P. McCarthy Council #9427 Knights of Columbus, Gloucester’s Chick-fil-A, Gloucester Union Relief of Missionary Baptist, and the program’s host, Marine Corps League Detachment 1317.