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Memorial Day: 2 Utah veterans' cemeteries ranked among the nation's ‘most revered'

Memorial Day: 2 Utah veterans' cemeteries ranked among the nation's ‘most revered'

Yahoo24-05-2025
Arlington National Cemetery.
Gettysburg National Cemetery.
Hawaii's National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, aka 'The Punchbowl.'
For Americans across generations, each of those military burial grounds are regarded as sacred — the final resting places for legions of veterans who fought the nation's wars.
But many other military cemeteries in the country are equally revered — including two in Utah: Fort Douglas Post Cemetery in Salt Lake City and the Utah Veterans Cemetery and Memorial Park in Bluffdale.
Choice Mutual, an insurance agency specializing in funeral insurance, recently surveyed 3,000 Americans and asked which military cemeteries they would most like to visit.
They compiled and ranked 97 'Most Revered Veterans' Cemeteries to Visit on Memorial Day'.
Several military memorial locales included in the survey findings — including Arlington and Gettysburg — are famous.
Others, less so.
But each cemetery, according to respondents, 'carries its own kind of meaning.'
Fort Douglas Post Cemetery is ranked No. 39 in the Choice Mutual survey. Utah Veterans Cemetery and Memorial Park is No. 85.
Besides enjoying traditional holiday barbecues or maybe a round of golf and other 'kick-off-summer' fun, many Utahns on Monday will visit a military cemetery or participate in Memorial Day ceremonies.
Expect both Fort Douglas and Utah Veterans Cemetery and Memorial Park to be filled with American flags and grateful visitors throughout the Memorial Day weekend.
For active-duty soldiers such as Lt. Col. Chris Kroeber, Memorial Day remains a day to remember the men and women who invested their lives so generations of Americans can work, play, worship and live freely.
'Every time I think of my friends who paid that ultimate price, I ask myself if their investment was worth it,' he told the Deseret News.
'Every time I see kids playing safely at the park, or I hike in the mountains, or fish on public land and enjoy the freedom around me daily, the answer to that question comes clearly to me — it is definitely worth it.'
Kroeber hopes all Utahns observe Monday's holiday by remembering that some have given all to ensure liberty for others.
'Think about them and why they were willing to give everything so you could have the freedom to choose how to live your life,' he said. 'Please continue to be a people and live an idea worth fighting for.'
It's likely that many lifelong Salt Lake City residents have never visited the 3.25-acre Fort Douglas Post Cemetery located near the University of Utah.
It was transferred from the U.S. Army to the National Cemetery Administration in 2019, according to the NCA's website.
But there are myriad reasons to spend an hour or two on the memorial grounds, said Fort Douglas Military Museum spokesperson Fiona Robinson.
'It's a historic cemetery for one, with burials going back to 1863,' she said. 'There's been some real passion put behind the establishment and care of the cemetery here at Fort Douglas.'
Camp Douglas was established in 1862 by Colonel Patrick E. Connor of the California Militia. A cemetery site was selected within the camp — with the first committal happening that same year.
The original 1862 plot contained 22 headstones and one large grave marker associated with the 1863 Bear River Massacre, the first military interments here, according to the National Cemetery Administration.
A 20-foot tall monument carved of red butte sandstone located in the center of the cemetery honors the 21 soldiers killed in the Bear River action.
Most of these markers — carved using sandstone from Red Butte Canyon — reportedly deteriorated to the point that they were replaced with government headstones in the early 2000s.
The grave of Utah Territory Gov. James D. Doty features a marker made of the same material.
A 15-foot-tall granite monument in the cemetery's southeast corner was dedicated on Memorial Day in 1933 honoring World War I German prisoners of war who died while interned at Camp Douglas.
Robinson hopes more people include Fort Douglas Post Cemetery in their Memorial Day activities. It's a placid place that's rarely crowded; tucked away from the city and traffic.
'It's not just a cemetery, it's a shrine,' she said. 'It's a monument to veterans and people who were associated with the military — whether it was a wife who lived here at Fort Douglas, or a civilian worker up here at Fort Douglas.'
Meanwhile, the survey's 85th-ranked Utah Veterans Cemetery and Memorial Park is marking its 35th anniversary.
Dedicated on Memorial Day in 1990, the cemetery is state-operated and located immediately north of Camp Williams in Bluffdale.
The Utah Veterans Cemetery and Memorial Park offers a panoramic view of the Wasatch Mountain from a peaceful corner of southwest Salt Lake County.
It is the final resting place for many local veterans and their families.
'Every aspect of the cemetery,' according to the cemetery's website, 'is a reflection of our respect and appreciation for the sacrifices of those who have served.'
A chapel functions as the centerpiece of the cemetery and is available for memorial services.
Meanwhile, the cemetery's administration office houses a collection of military artifacts and American history documents.
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What is redshirting? The controversy for parents' rights causes stir in Washington, DC.

DC Public Schools officials said schools will more strictly enforce a policy disallowing parents from delaying toddlers' kindergarten start date. Jennifer Lilintahl said she knew her 5-year-old daughter wasn't ready to learn how to read with other kids her age in the kindergarten classes last school year at Lafayette Elementary School in the Chevy Chase neighborhood of Washington D.C. Although her daughter was eligible to attend kindergarten due to her age, Lilintahl enrolled her daughter in a mostly play-based pre-kindergarten class at a local preschool for the third year in a row. This January, Lilintahl emailed the school's principal to say her now almost-6-year-old daughter is ready for kindergarten this fall. But the principal said the girl must enroll in first grade for the 2025-2026 school year, which begins on Aug. 25, because she'll be six-years-old in September. Lilantahl was dismayed. 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Mayor Muriel Bowser said "we shouldn't have a policy to say we want some kids to be advantaged to the disadvantage of other kids." Moving forward, the district will strictly follow the law by assigning age-centered grade levels, he said. As millions of kids skip kindergarten: The learning gap widens – and schools may lose funding Why redshirting draws both opposition and support About one in 10 parents said in a survey they delayed their child's kindergarten start date during the 2021-2022 school year, with a majority indicating their kids' weren't emotionally or academically ready or they were too young. The research, published by EdChoice, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that advocates for school vouchers, and conducted by Morning Consult, shows one in five parents surveyed were influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. An older academic journal article, published in 2013, said about 5% of kids in the United States were redshirted each year. 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Be informed, make a decision, and once you make it, support it." Brown said he's personally "always been an advocate that if you feel like they're ready, send them." No matter what parents choose, Brown said parents should be confident about their decision because kids can sense when their parents have doubts about their awareness of their abilities. That can take a toll on their self-esteem and academic and developmental skills. Lilintahl said she wants to avoid future learning setbacks for her daughter. The district tested her 5-year-old daughter on July 29 to determine her readiness for school, and she failed the reading portion of the test, she said. The mother said she'll continue to fight the district's decision, and has expressed her frustration with jurisdiction officials, but she's "lost a lot of trust in the school and principal." First grade isn't an option for their family. "She doesn't know how to read," Lilintahl said. Contact Kayla Jimenez at kjimenez@ Follow her on X at @kaylajjimenez.

I toured the USS Silversides, a World War II submarine that sank 23 enemy vessels and earned 12 battle stars. Take a look inside.
I toured the USS Silversides, a World War II submarine that sank 23 enemy vessels and earned 12 battle stars. Take a look inside.

Yahoo

time21 hours ago

  • Yahoo

I toured the USS Silversides, a World War II submarine that sank 23 enemy vessels and earned 12 battle stars. Take a look inside.

The USS Silversides submarine sank 23 ships and earned 12 battle stars during World War II. Visitors can tour the vessel at the USS Silversides Submarine Museum in Muskegon, Michigan. The submarine was the site of a successful emergency appendectomy in enemy waters in 1942. Christmas Eve, 1942. The USS Silversides, a US Navy submarine, is surrounded by Japanese warships on a covert patrol in enemy-controlled waters. And George Platter's appendix is about to burst. Platter, a crew member on the USS Silversides, will die if he doesn't get surgery immediately. When the commanding officer gives the order, crew members spring into action. They fashion surgical tools out of utensils from the galley. They find an ironing board to prop up Platter's feet since the table in the wardroom is too short to lie him flat. They submerge beneath the waves to create more stability for the operation, even though the submarine's batteries are only partially charged. The pharmacist's mate, Thomas Moore, has never performed the surgery before. He keeps a medical textbook open next to him the whole time. Platter wakes up during the surgery when the local anesthetic wears off, so they sedate him with ether. It leaks into the rest of the submarine and sedates some of the crew, as well. After four hours, against all odds, the surgery is successful. Platter makes a full recovery and is back on watch six days later. It's extraordinary stories such as this one that are preserved at the USS Silversides Submarine Museum in Muskegon, Michigan. Visitors can climb aboard the historic submarine, which was awarded 12 battle stars for its service in World War II, and explore its battle stations, cramped bunks, and even the operating table where Platter received his appendectomy. I toured the USS Silversides in May. Here's what I saw. Commissioned in 1941, the USS Silversides sank 23 ships over its 14 war patrols, making it one of the most successful American submarines from World War II. The Gato-class submarine measures 312 feet long and weighs 2,410 tons while submerged. Its standard crew consisted of eight officers and 72 enlisted men. After it was decommissioned in 1946, the USS Silversides was used as a teaching submarine and became a National Historic Landmark. From 1947 to 1969, the USS Silversides was used as a training vessel for the Ninth Naval District in Chicago. It was then moved to the Naval Armory and Navy Pier before arriving in Muskegon to serve as a museum in 1987. It was also used as a movie set for the 2002 film "Below." The submarine is now the star attraction at the USS Silversides Museum in Muskegon. The USS Silversides Submarine Museum is open seven days a week from April through December and operates Thursday through Monday in the winter months of January, February, and March. An all-inclusive ticket to the museum costs $17.50 for adults, $15 for veterans, and is free of charge for active-duty service members. Tickets can be purchased on the museum's website. Like the USS Cobia in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, the museum also offers visitors the chance to spend a night on the submarine. The USS Silversides is docked outside the museum in the Muskegon Lake Channel, which leads into Lake Michigan. The Lake Express ferry passes by the USS Silversides Submarine Museum on its route between Muskegon and Milwaukee. As I began my tour of the submarine, the ferry honked its horn as passengers waved at me from the upper deck. The deck featured weapons such as a 4-inch, 50-caliber deck gun, a 40-millimeter antiaircraft gun, and a 20-millimeter surface-to-surface gun. The 40-millimeter antiaircraft gun had the longest range, capable of shooting targets up to 22,800 feet away. A plaque on the deck memorialized the crew member Mike Harbin, who was killed by enemy fire while manning the deck gun. Harbin was 19 years old when he was shot in battle on May 10, 1942. He was buried at sea. The torpedo loading ramp was made of a wood called lignum vitae, which gets slippery when wet. Lignum vitae is Latin for "wood of life." The rest of the deck was made of teakwood, which is impervious to water, fire, and termites. It also doesn't float, which was crucial to maintain the submarine's covert operations if a piece broke off. Decals on the side of the submarine indicated its many wartime accomplishments. The USS Silversides featured stickers showing it sank 30 ships, but that number has since been amended to 23, Bethann Egan, the museum's executive director, told Business Insider. The USS Silversides also damaged 14 ships, cleared 16 enemy mines, and rescued two American paratroopers. The first stop on my tour was the forward torpedo room, where crew members loaded torpedoes into the six torpedo tubes. The room slept 16 crew members on bunks that unfolded alongside the torpedoes, which measured 22 feet long and weighed 3,000 pounds. Lockers above the bunks were used to store personal possessions. All of a crew member's personal items had to fit into one small locker. Colored lights were used to help crew members' eyes adjust to the dark to prevent night blindness. If the submarine was too bright inside, crew members wouldn't be able to see in the dark if they went up onto the deck at night during an attack. The lights used to be blue and then switched to red, which is why the light fixture said "blue" on it even though the light bulb was red. The shower and bathroom in the forward torpedo room were used by the officers, whose bunks were down the hall. Flushing the toilet on the USS Silversides was a 12-step process. One wrong move would cause the toilet's contents to shoot back out. Meals were plated and reheated in the officers' pantry. Officers ate the same meals as the rest of the crew but dined in the privacy of the wardroom instead of the crew's mess. The pantry also stocked snacks and coffee. The table on display in the wardroom was the original table where George Platter's successful appendectomy took place in 1942. "The pharmacist's mate who actually performed it did not technically have permission from all the way up, but the commander made the decision that this needed to happen or else the sailor was going to die," Egan said. "So he stood up for him and made sure that he was not court-martialed after." The wardroom also served as the officers' dining room and lounge. The higher an officer's rank, the fewer people he had to share a room with. Junior and senior officers served as administrators on the submarine, while the executive officer, known as the "XO," was second-in-command to the commanding officer. Officers' quarters included foldout desks and sinks. The rooms also came with storage areas where they could hang their uniforms. The commanding officer enjoyed the only private room on the submarine. His stateroom featured a depth gauge and a compass above the bed so that he could tell how deep the submarine was and which way it was facing at all times. Chief petty officers slept in a room nicknamed the "goat locker." According to the Naval History and Heritage Command, the nickname dates back to the 1890s, when chief petty officers took care of the goats kept on ships for fresh milk. Another explanation is that chief petty officers served in the Navy for more than a decade to reach their positions and were known as "old goats." In the yeoman's shack, the yeoman handled the submarine's paperwork. In addition to managing personnel records, the yeoman also kept logs of the submarine's changes in direction, speed, and depth. In the control room, crew members managed the USS Silversides' vital functions with numerous technical instruments. The bow and stern plane wheels pictured above controlled the submarine's depth and angle. The commanding officer would give commands such as "2 degrees right rudder," which the crew would repeat and execute. The ship's inclinometer worked like a carpenter's level to show if the submarine was tilting to one side or the other. Keith Gill, the museum's director of curatorial services, told BI that staff members use this inclinometer "every day" to check on the submarine. "It's almost never centered, and that's because we have some leaks in some tanks that we're monitoring and adjusting air pressure to keep water out," Gill said. The hull opening indicator light panel was known as the "Christmas tree" for its red and green lights. A green light indicated that a vent or hatch was closed, while red meant it was open. The submarine could only submerge when the board was fully lit up in green. The helmsman's wheel steered the submarine. On some World War II submarines, such as the USS Becuna, the main helm was in the conning tower above the control room. On the USS Silversides, the main helm was in the control room itself. The control room also housed the compressed air manifold and trim manifold. The compressed air manifold distributed compressed air throughout the submarine, which was used to start the engines, fire torpedoes, and surface the vessel. The trim manifold showed how much weight was in different tanks on the submarine and moved water between them to maintain the ship's balance as it used up fuel or fired weapons. In the radio room, crew members could communicate with vessels up to 12,000 miles away. Most communications happened in code. Cooks prepared all of the crew's meals in the galley. Cooks were also trained to operate the deck guns and perform other technical tasks around the submarine. Gill noted that during World War II, Black crew members were often relegated to roles in the kitchen and weren't allowed to advance beyond serving as stewards because of the Navy's segregation policies. "One of the negative sides of our past is how we treated African American citizens," he said. "They were in the military, but they were segregated somewhat. On a Navy ship, on a sub, you really can't segregate, but you can control what they're doing." The kitchen featured a piece of equipment I'd never seen on a submarine before: a soft-serve ice cream machine. The kitchen also included a deep fryer. Crew members ate meals in three shifts in the crew's mess. Submarines were known for doing some of the most dangerous work and having some of the most difficult living conditions in the military, but the Navy ensured they received the best food. Submariners also received hazard pay, the highest in the Navy. The enlisted men also slept in shifts in the crew's quarters. Newer crew members slept on the bottom bunks, which could also occasionally be used as food storage early on in a patrol. "Supposedly, they called this the honeymoon suite on top," Egan said. "I don't know if that's 100% accurate." The mattresses in the two middle bunks were placed so close together that they essentially functioned as one bed. Regular crew members showered only every 13 to 15 days in the crew's washroom. Officers showered every three to five days, while the cooks showered every day since they were handling food. The forward and after engine rooms each contained two 1,600-horsepower diesel engines manufactured by Fairbanks-Morse. At top speed, the USS Silversides could travel at 21 knots, or about 24 miles an hour. The forward engine room also contained two evaporators that distilled ocean water into fresh water. The engines are still operational. The USS Silversides' insignia was painted on one of the aft engines. The logo depicts a silverside fish smoking a cigar and holding a torpedo. The maneuvering room was crewed by two electricians who controlled the propulsion of the submarine. At full power, the USS Silversides used 4 million watts of electricity. The last stop on the tour was the aft torpedo room in the back of the submarine. The aft torpedo room was smaller than the forward torpedo room, with four torpedo tubes and room for eight torpedoes. The room displayed a real demilitarized Mark 18 electric torpedo. Electric torpedoes such as the Mark 18 didn't leave a wake, or trail of waves, behind them, making them more difficult to detect. After I finished my tour of the submarine, I visited the museum itself, which featured photos and artifacts from World War II and beyond. I particularly enjoyed an exhibit about the appendectomy that took place in the wardroom, featuring photos from the procedure. Preserving the aging submarine is no small task, but the USS Silversides remains a fascinating testament to the dedication of American service members in World War II. After running its engines in an annual Memorial Day tribute, the museum hopes to give the USS Silversides its first oil change since the 1950s this summer. Eventually, the entire vessel will have to be removed from the water and dry-docked because of leaks in its tanks. The museum applied for federal funding through the Save America's Treasures grant program, but Egan said during my May visit that they might not end up receiving it because of sweeping cuts made by the White House DOGE office. "They have not officially cut that funding source yet, but it's not looking good," Egan said. When the submarine was on active duty, the entire 80-person crew worked tirelessly to maintain the ship, and the Navy financed all necessary repairs and upgrades. The USS Silversides Submarine Museum's preservation efforts, however, are privately funded and largely volunteer-driven. "We're just poor museum people who are trying to honor the commitment that these guys made over 14 war patrols to protect our country," Gill said. Read the original article on Business Insider

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