ANDERSONVILLE, GA (WALB) -
Saturday was National Armed Forces Day. And Saturday morning a tribute was held for veterans across the world. It's called EchoTaps and the purpose is to honor and remember our American military veterans through a musical performance of Taps.
The solemn tune Taps echoes through the graves of fallen veterans. This day honors all those who have served and continue to serve in uniform.
"We were all together at one point in time in a terrible place and we are kind of like brothers, and we have that camaraderie that we can share, and playing the horn is giving back to the people who weren't able to be with us today," says Bill Carey, Vietnam Veteran/Bugles Across America.
Today is Armed Forces Day, and at 11:00 o'clock this morning Taps was played at every National Cemetery and U.S. Veterans cemetery worldwide.
This tribute to veterans is called EchoTaps and is sponsored by the organization Bugles Across America.
"In a national cemetery, most of the graves, are graves of veterans, and certainly here at Andersonville, you have prisoners of war from the civil war, these are men and women who literally gave their lives for the freedoms we enjoy, and at least once a year that is something that is worthy of pausing and remembering," says Eric Leonard, Interpretation and Education Chief.
Leonard says it is important to get the young people involved in remembering those who have served.
"Memorial traditions are all about remembering the past, remembering the fallen, and that is a learned tradition, we have to pass it on, and youth involvement is really critical," says Leonard.
The Buglers played in a cascading manor around the cemetery. They started with the oldest Bugler and finished with the youngest, symbolizing the passing of tradition.
Since 1949, the third Saturday in May has been designated as Armed Forces Day.
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