Memorial Day 2009

President Barack Obama participates in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery Monday, May 25, 2009. White House Photo, Lawrence Jackson

President Obama honored America’s fallen service members at Arlington National Cemetery this morning and said that the men and women who choose to serve their country are the “best of America.”

The president laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington and said the cemetery, which is the final resting place for soldiers dating back to the Revolutionary War, serves as a reminder of the “meaning of valor.”

“With each death, we are heartbroken; with each death, we grow more determined,” he said.

Obama sent a wreath to the African-American Civil War Memorial in Washington, D.C. He is the first president to send a wreath to this memorial that honors the 200,000 African-American soldiers who fought for the Union Army.

We are here because they stood up and gave their last measure.