Hundreds of people gathered at the national cemetery in the Presidio on Monday to remember the nation’s fallen service members, at the Bay Area’s largest Memorial Day ceremony.
The tribute, held from 10:30 a.m. to noon, brought veterans, military families, elected officials and Bay Area residents together among rows of white headstones overlooking the bay. The formal program included remarks from civic leaders, musical performances and a rifle volley that echoed across the cemetery grounds, which were lined with American flags.
Among those in attendance were House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis. For attendees like Rhonda Richardson, the event carried deep personal meaning. Richardson attended with her husband, Steve, to visit the graves of her parents, both buried at the cemetery. Her father died in the 1970s, and for years the couple brought her mother to visit his grave until she died in 2001 and was buried beside him.
Nearby, Oakland resident Danielle Janssen reflected on the American tradition. Janssen and her husband recently obtained their citizenship, and she said the family felt it is important to familiarize their three children — all born in San Francisco — with the “culture and history of this event, this day, and what it represents to everybody.”
“We are seeing it from a different perspective as citizens now, coming from two very different places, and it’s very special,” Janssen said.