Today is the last day of an extended holiday weekend. It’s a day many of us will celebrate with a trip to the lake, the golf course or the pool or by cooking out with friends and family.

But as we enjoy the unofficial start to summer, it’s also important to remember why we have the day off — to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country.

Memorial Day originated with the practice of women decorating the graves of fallen soldiers during the Civil War, a simple gesture to honor and remember those who died fighting. More than a million men and women have paid such a price in service to their country from the Revolutionary War through the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The official history of Memorial Day began in 1868, when May 30 was established as Decoration Day. Nearly 200 cemeteries across the country participated in Decoration Day that first year. Over time, Decoration Day became commonly known as Memorial Day, and it was officially established as such in 1967. The event was moved from May 30 to the last Monday in May in 1971.

Douglas County has hundreds of war dead to honor this holiday weekend, according to a list compiled by the Lawrence Journal-World. They will be remembered during an event at 10 a.m. today at Oak Hill Cemetery hosted by Lawrence’s American Legion Post.

The event will include an honor guard ceremony, bagpipe music, a speech by City Commissioner Mike Amyx, speeches by local veterans and a flyover by local pilots. The cemetery will be decorated with flags and the American Legion will use the event to collect flags for proper disposal.

In November 1941, just weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt issued a proclamation designating Dec. 15 as Bill of Rights Day. In issuing the proclamation, Roosevelt said, “Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy forget in time that men have died to win them.”

As we enjoy the Memorial Day holiday, it’s important to take a moment to remember the men and women who gave their lives to protect the freedoms that benefit us all.