Honor and Remember Month of May
Campaign Strategy
Men and women who have died in military service to America are the subject of a designated month of solemn ceremonies, special events and public recognition that encompasses all thirty-one days in May. The theme for America’s Honor and Remember Month of May is Honor Your Hometown Fallen Hero.
While memorial services with wreaths, speeches and bands are typical elements of the Memorial Day weekend, the day designated to honor our fallen has been overshadowed by many commercial and recreational pursuits. For the families who have endured the loss of a loved one to preserve the freedoms we enjoy as Americans, Memorial Day can be a hollow observance that seems to be more about cooking hot dogs than commemorating fallen heroes. Families of our nation’s fallen deserve more than the one day that has become for many nothing more than the start of summer or simply a long shopping weekend.
The celebration of America’s Honor and Remember Month seeks to put the emphasis where it belongs with Honor Your Hometown Fallen Hero. Each day in May will place a special emphasis on recognizing all military fallen heroes by encouraging organizations, corporations and the media to focus on these individual heroes from cities and towns across each state. For example, each year Honor and Remember Month in Virginia begins with the annual “Virginia Run for the Fallen,” a four-day, 250-mile tribute run featuring nearly 400 service member participants who will follow a course from Fort Story in Virginia Beach to Arlington National Cemetery.
“We would like to encourage every business, civic group, media outlet and neighborhood to do something special every day of the month to pay tribute to the men and women who gave all in defense of the freedoms we enjoy as Americans,” said George Lutz, founder of Honor and Remember, Inc. “This is an important opportunity for every citizen to take action and make a positive statement regarding the cost of liberty.” Families, friends and comrades of these service men and women will also be asked to contact their local media outlets and share positive stories about and photos of their fallen loved one in order to encourage the recognition of their sacrifice.
Honor and Remember, Inc. is a non-profit organization dedicated to establishing the Honor and Remember Flag, a tangible national symbol that was specifically created to express visual respect and gratitude for the generations of lives lost in defense of our freedoms and to the families they left behind.
Honor and Remember Month of May
Campaign Summary
Mission: To enhance the solemn meaning of Memorial Day by calling attention to our military fallen and their families each day of the month of May.
Justification: For the families who have endured the loss of a loved one during military service, Memorial Day can be a hollow observance that has sadly become more about cooking hot dogs than commemorating fallen heroes.
Audience: All patriotic citizens.
Strategy: Create broad national awareness using social media, point of purchase items, hero tributes and flag displays, “flag flashes” and alternative creative outreach strategies.
Who is participating: corporations, civic organizations, media outlets, flag manufacturers, flag sellers, state and city governments, professional sports teams and individuals, celebrities, schools, churches and all other interested Americans.
Honor and Remember Month of May
Campaign Action Sheet
Everyone can do something special each day of the month to pay tribute to the men and women who gave all in defense of the freedoms we enjoy as Americans. This is a real opportunity for all grateful citizens to make a positive statement concerning the cost of liberty.
Ideas for “Honor and Remember Month” include:
- State and local Governments can issue proclamations designating May as Honor and Remember Month;
- Businesses can be invited to download pictures and a bio of local heroes and post them in the windows or on the walls of their establishment;
- Families, friends or comrades of these heroes can send stories about their loved ones to local media;
- Schools can ask students to write stories and draw pictures about their hometown heroes for display;
- Notices can be posted in company emails, newsletters and community bulletin boards;
- Television and radio stations can profile a different hero each day;
- Churches, sports teams, organizations and special events can honor a hero in many specific ways;
- Government representatives can read into the municipal record the names of the fallen in their area;
- Individuals can suggest and encourage public service announcements on local radio and cable stations;
- Everyone can print out a list of fallen heroes from the Internet and post their names every day on their social networking channels and encourage their friends and families to share them on their pages;
- Business owners can display the Honor and Remember Flag with a symbolism poster inside their lobby;
- Everyone with a flagpole can fly the Honor and Remember Flag;
- Alternative creative ideas to honor and remember.
