HOOD RIVER: Idlewild Cemetery Ceremony

11:00am to 12:00pm

Idlewild Cemetery
980 Tucker Rd.
Hood River, OR 97031

Program Details | Directions

Memorial Day in Hood River
American Legion Post 22 hosts the annual Memorial Day ceremony in Hood River at Idlewild Cemetery.

Just how historic is the Memorial Day tradition in Hood River at Idlewild cemetery? The above photo from the History Museum of Hood River County shows the crowd gathered at the cemetery on May 30, 1928, when Memorial Day was still called “Decoration Day.” A Civil War veteran had just passed away and been buried at the cemetery ten days earlier. His grave was no doubt decorated for the above ceremony, just as the graves of other Civil War veterans–as well as veterans of later wars also buried at Idlewild–have been decorated each Memorial Day since.

The 2022 Memorial Day
program was especially moving
as it sought community healing
by highlighting the
Nisei experience in America and
Hood River in particular
during and since World War II.

Oregon Nisei Veterans WWII Memorial Hwy
High-school student Melanie Glatter (center) speaks at the 2022 Memorial Day ceremony, delivering a carefully-researched and moving address on the Nisei experience in Hood River and America more broadly, before, during and after World War II. You can read her full remarks here. Thanks to the hard work of Melanie, American Legion Post 22 Commander Carl Casey (far left), and others, the State of Oregon is on the verge of officially designating Highway 35 as Nisei Veterans Memorial Highway.
Memorial Day in Hood River
You can see full video of the above 2020 ceremony, held during the pandemic and broadcast live, in lieu of the normal public service.

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