Memorial Day 2018 will be special.

Of course, every Memorial Day is special. But the one coming up holds a distinction. It will be the 150th anniversary of the holiday.

This time around, many communities will not only remember ultimate sacrifice, but also will acknowledge that we’ve always remembered.

According to historical accounts, it was May 1868, when Gen. John A. Logan, commander in chief of the Union veterans’ group known as the Grand Army of the Republic, issued a decree. He said May 30 should be a nationwide day of commemoration for the more than 620,000 soldiers killed in the Civil War.

Back then, they called the holiday Decoration Day. The intent was to honor the fallen by placing flowers on grave sites of the war dead.

Some say May 30 was chosen because that date would ensure that fresh flowers would be in bloom. Others say the date was selected because it wouldn’t interfere with any particular Civil War battle anniversary.

Whatever the case, the idea caught on.

As an early town, Tamaqua, founded 1799, was among the first to officially mark the holiday.

The Civil War ended in the spring of 1865. Just several years later, Tamaqua was honoring its war dead with an official program of activities.

Last week, Eric Zizelmann, a founder of the Tamaqua Remembers movement, displayed newspaper clippings from the 1870s that outlined various ways in which the Schuylkill County borough proclaimed heartfelt debt to those who sacrificed everything.

He recognizes the importance of the holiday and its legacy in the town.

So it was no surprise to Zizelmann when an enthusiastic group of Tamaqua volunteers turned out to plan a monthlong series of patriotic and commemorative events to take place this year.

“We had 21 who showed for the first meeting. Of those, only one was a veteran,” he said. The team, of course, represented a cross-section of the general public. They happen to be residents of just one community where Memorial Day and its significance are not taken for granted.

The group has assembled an impressive list of events including a home and business decorating contest, patriotic essays, a walking tour, concerts, exhibits, author lecture, fireworks and, of course, a parade.

The same holds true for other small towns and townships in the Times News coverage area. Memorial Day, where we live, is a holiday of distinction.

In Summit Hill, for example, the annual Memorial Day parade is a highlight of the year.

But such reverence isn’t necessarily the norm in other states.

A Gallup poll some years ago determined that only 28 percent of Americans know the meaning of the holiday.

And there’s concern that the significance of Memorial Day is lost on the younger generation.

The situation came to a head in the late 1990s when a group of schoolchildren toured the U.S. Capitol.

The youngsters were asked a simple question: “What does Memorial Day mean to you?”

Almost instinctively came the response: “Oh, that’s the day the pool opens!”

The shocker prompted Congress to enact The National Moment of Remembrance, which asked all Americans to pause at 3 p.m. on Memorial Day in a national show of unity and respect. It was a nice idea, but it seemed to fizzle over the ensuing years.

It’s alarming that the American public would need an act of Congress in order for Memorial Day to live up to its original intent.

Does respect need to be legislated?

Fortunately, we live in an area where values are revered and sacrifice is appreciated and honored.

And that’s what will happen in the coming weeks.

Yes, the pools will open.

The outdoor furniture will return to our porches, decks and lawns.

But in our small towns and townships, where the meaning of Memorial Day is a way of life, our passion for doing what’s right will burn brighter than any barbecue grill.

We’ll fly our flags, bow our heads and remember to remember. It’s our yearly rite of passage.

Memorial Day connects us to our mothers and fathers, our grandmothers and grandfathers, and our rightful place in a lineage of meaningful existence.

The holiday will turn 150 years old. We’ll be here to bear witness. And that’s something special.

DONALD R. SERFASS | tneditor@tnonline.com