Watch the fire burn for 24 hours before Memorial Day | News

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WFFT) – The National Veterans Memorial Shrine and Museum is honoring the lives of veterans as Memorial Day approaches.

Veterans leaders lit the 36th annual Watch Fire Friday, surrounded by family and friends of Northeast Indiana veterans who died during or after service.

Organizers will keep the fire burning from 6 p.m. Friday to 6 p.m. Saturday as part of the Memorial Day weekend tradition.

The community is invited to the sanctuary each year to light a log on the fire in honor of a loved one, or people can simply pull up a chair and sit next to the fire to reflect on the veterans they have lost.

“He gave his all to his country on May 11, 2006 in the Al-Anbar province of Iraq,” David A. Grames told the crowd Friday evening of his son, Marine LCpl David James Grames Sanchez.

“Memorial Day is not just a holiday for us,” Grames said. “Every day is Memorial Day. We remember him all the time and we try to remember all the other veterans who gave their lives as well.”

Families have the chance to share stories about their veterans while placing a log on the fire.

Watch Fire coordinator Roy Vierck says the ceremony is as much about veterans as it is about their friends and family.

“The sacrifices aren't just for the veterans. The family members who were left behind sacrificed that veteran.”

Vierck says he wants to make sure people know their veterans will never be forgotten, and he hopes their stories will demonstrate the cost of war.

“I have lost veterans within my family and outside of my family. My memory always comes back to it,” Vierck said.

Vierck plans to help light the Watch Fire for 24 hours.

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