Scott Dickson, DO, Regional Medical Director, Veterans Resource Group Co-Chair
Memorial Day carries a weight that feels different when you have worn the uniform. As an Air Force veteran, it is not an abstract tribute or a long weekend, it is a quiet reckoning with the names, faces, and moments that never quite leave you. The discipline and mission focus of military life teach you to move forward to complete the task at hand, but Memorial Day pulls you back, if only for a moment, to those who did not get that chance. It is a reminder that service is not measured solely in years or rank, but sometimes in a single act of sacrifice that alters countless lives. The flag, the ceremonies, and the silence all take on a deeply personal meaning, because behind each symbol is someone who once stood in formation, shared a laugh, or carried the same burdens.
One moment that has stayed with me over the years happened in an airport terminal coming home from a hospital site visit. As we waited at the gate in the usual noise and distraction of travel, a flag-draped casket was slowly removed from the cargo hold of an arriving aircraft. Almost instinctively, the entire terminal became silent. Conversations stopped, phones were lowered, and strangers stood together in quiet respect as military personnel carefully escorted the casket across the tarmac. No words were needed. In that brief moment, everyone understood that someone had given everything in service to the country. It was a powerful reminder that Memorial Day is ultimately about people and not statistics or history books, but individuals whose sacrifice deserves to be remembered with dignity and gratitude.
From the perspective of a physician, that meaning deepens further. Medicine teaches you to preserve life, to fight for it in the most literal sense, and to witness both its fragility and resilience. On Memorial Day, that lens brings a profound awareness of what was lost, not just lives, but futures, families, and the ordinary moments that make up a lifetime. It also highlights the enduring impact on those left behind, including veterans who carry visible and invisible wounds long after the conflict ends. Honoring those who gave their lives is not only about reflection, but about carrying forward their legacy and living in a way that reflects the values they embodied: duty, integrity, and selfless service. Remembering them means speaking their names, sharing their stories, and ensuring that their sacrifices are neither reduced to a single day nor forgotten with time.
In that intersection of service and healing, Memorial Day stands as both a solemn tribute and a call to action. It asks us to remember with intention and to honor not just through ceremony, but through how we care for one another . In doing so, we ensure that their legacy endures, not only in memory, but in the lives we lead because of them.
