MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — A solemn remembrance was held Monday in Mobile for Memorial Day. The Color Guard is in place, and the flag at the Center of the Mobile National Cemetery is at half-staff while veterans and civilians gather to remember the men and women who aren’t here.

“Just seeing all the veterans come together, the community come together. The thing that really is heartening is that all of our veterans from all over, from every community within mobile, they all come together and we work together. You see them all around us. Everybody plays their part. That’s very heartening,” said Navy Veteran Pete Riehm. Organizers say events like these are good ways to pass along these stories of service and sacrifice to the next generation.

“It’s good to pass it on to let them know that the freedoms they enjoy today were protected by the men who are buried here today,” said Lou Lartigue with the South Alabama Veterans Council. The keynote talked about the history of Memorial Day and the importance of pausing and reflecting for the holiday.

“With the busy world that we live in today, to know that every American would and should hopefully take a pause to know that we’re all focused on the same thing. And that’s our history. Of the soldiers that went before us, that sacrifice for us,” said Capt. Ulysses Mullins with Coast Guard Sector Mobile.