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Netherlands American Cemetery: Difference between revisions
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In 1945, an official of the village suggested that each of the graves and memorial names be adopted by families and individuals, and each has remained adopted into the 21st century. Many adoptions by citizens of the Netherlands and Belgium are passed down through family generations, and in 2021 there was a waiting list of those who wished to take up lapsed adoptions. The adoption program, which exists in various forms for most of the American cemeteries in Europe is administered by The Foundation for Adopting Graves American Cemetery Margraten. | In 1945, an official of the village suggested that each of the graves and memorial names be adopted by families and individuals, and each has remained adopted into the 21st century. Many adoptions by citizens of the Netherlands and Belgium are passed down through family generations, and in 2021 there was a waiting list of those who wished to take up lapsed adoptions. The adoption program, which exists in various forms for most of the American cemeteries in Europe is administered by The Foundation for Adopting Graves American Cemetery Margraten. | ||
Each year on the Dutch Memorial Day commemorations take place in the cemetery. In 2005, President | Each year on the Dutch Memorial Day commemorations take place in the cemetery. In 2005, President George W. Bush became the first American president to visit the cemetery. The following quote is from a speech President Bush gave that day: | ||
{{cquote|On this peaceful May morning we commemorate a great victory for liberty, and the thousands of white marble crosses and Stars of David underscore the terrible price we pay for that victory. For the Americans who rest here, Dutch soil provides a fitting home. It was from a Dutch port that many of our pilgrim fathers first sailed for America. It was a Dutch port that gave the American flag its first gun salute. It was the Dutch who became one of the first foreign nations to recognize the independence of the new United States of America. And when American soldiers returned to this continent to fight for freedom, they were led by a President (Roosevelt) who owed his family name to this great land.}} | {{cquote|On this peaceful May morning we commemorate a great victory for liberty, and the thousands of white marble crosses and Stars of David underscore the terrible price we pay for that victory. For the Americans who rest here, Dutch soil provides a fitting home. It was from a Dutch port that many of our pilgrim fathers first sailed for America. It was a Dutch port that gave the American flag its first gun salute. It was the Dutch who became one of the first foreign nations to recognize the independence of the new United States of America. And when American soldiers returned to this continent to fight for freedom, they were led by a President (Roosevelt) who owed his family name to this great land.}} | ||