More than 200 youth volunteers from around the Salt Lake Valley honored military veterans for Memorial Day on Thursday by placing 3,000 American flags on the graves of service men and women at Larkin Sunset Gardens Cemetery.
Due to the enormity of the task and to ensure those buried there are not forgotten, Larkin Mortuary partnered with local community youth groups to coordinate the placement of flags in the 76-acre property.
In addition, the volunteers swept and polished headstones to help beautify the cemetery grounds.
“Memorial Day is always a special and sacred occasion to remember those who have sacrificed so much for our country and we should always remember them,” Lance Larkin, president of Larkin Mortuary, said. “Watching the young people in our community place the flags with such reverence and respect is truly heartwarming.”
Prior to distributing the flags, the youth gathered to hear a patriotic message from Paul Michael Warner, a federal magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court of Utah. Warner served in the Judge Advocate General branch of the Utah Army National Guard for 25 years.
