The publication is reproduced in full below:
HONORING ARMAAN SHRIVASTAV OF RACE BROOK SCHOOL IN ORANGE, CONNECTICUT
______
HON. ROSA L. DeLAURO
of connecticut
in the house of representatives
Thursday, June 24, 2021
Ms. DeLAURO. Madam Speaker, each year the community of Orange, Connecticut gathers for a solemn ceremony to mark Memorial Day. As part of this ceremony, local elementary school students are invited to submit essays that share their thoughts on Memorial Day and its meaning to them. Submissions from each of the community's three elementary schools are selected to be included in the ceremony. I had the opportunity to join the Orange ceremony this year and was inspired by the words of this year's winners and am pleased to have this opportunity to share them.
Armaan Shrivastav, a student at Race Brook School submitted the following essay:
Why is Memorial Day Celebrated? Unreasoning leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to desire for power. Power leads to war. For war, we need soldiers. So many soldiers die serving their nation. Memorial Day is for remembering those brave soldiers who gave up their lives for their fellow citizens.
Memorial Day is when we honor and remember the brave soldiers. We celebrate Memorial Day to show respect for them. We must thank these soldiers who sacrificed themselves for the country. Memorial Day is a day to bow to them. Many people celebrate this day by going to their family's graves together and hold a gathering or participate in a parade. New York is the birthplace of Memorial Day. After the Civil War, which claimed many lives, people started decorating graves with flowers. This came to be known as Decoration Day. Since then, people have started giving more importance to this day by visiting soldier's graves every year, so the government officially announced the last Monday of May as Memorial Day.
Memorial Day is celebrated on the last Monday of May. This year Memorial Day is on 31st May. We should all honor these brave soldiers, offer flowers to them and remember their selfless service for the nation and what they did for us.
For more than two hundred years American soldiers have answered the call to defend our land and our values of freedom and democracy. With annual ceremonies like the one in Orange, that engage our youngest citizens, we ensure that we will never forget that our armed forces have a long and proud history, and that every one of our veterans has demonstrated outstanding courage, dedication, and service. It is my honor to rise today to thank Armaan Shrivastav for his very special contribution to Memorial Day and his community.
____________________
SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 110
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
House Representatives' salaries are historically higher than the median US income.
Alerts Sign-up