For Navy veteran and VFW post commander George Valko of Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., Memorial Day celebrations are near and dear to his heart. Valko served in the Navy during the Korean War, but “my uncle Mike was killed in the Battle of the Bulge,” he says. “I march in parades and celebrate not just for myself. I’m keeping memories of Mike alive.”
The federal holiday to honor our nation’s fallen war heroes is also the red, white and blue kickoff to summer, a time for enjoying parades, beaches and backyard parties. This weekend, almost two-thirds of Americans will gather with friends and family, according to Boston-based IHS Global Insight.
But this year, as the recession continues to depress spending, the economic impact of one of America's oldest and best-known holidays may be off about 20 percent. Heather Hunter of AAA Travel Services reports that median spending will be $809 this Memorial Day, down from last year’s $1,052. Yet 32.1 million Americans will still travel this weekend, up 5.4 percent from 2009.
That’s “substantial,” says Hunter. “Though the economy is still rocked by waves of uncertainty, the past year has given us good economic data. People are ready to get out and start traveling again. There’s a hopefulness about recovery.”
We're still eating well — Consumer surveys show that 54 percent of American households fire up their grills on Memorial Day. That's a whole lot of steaks and burgers — by some estimates, more than 60 million pounds of it.
"Memorial Day is the biggest backyard barbeque bash of the year," says Rick McCarty, a vice president of market research at the National Cattlemen's Beef Association in Denver, Co.
All Hail the Humble Hot Dog
Whether beef or pork, the humble hot dog also gets a big welcome over Memorial Day. About 38 percent of hot dog sales — that’s seven billion franks, or 818 hot dogs downed each second — occur between Memorial and Labor Day.
"People buy 150 million hot dogs on the Fourth of July alone," says Janet Riley, president of the National Hot Dog & Sausage Council in Washington, D.C.the self-dubbed Queen of Wien. "And I think that’s a number you could apply to Memorial Day as well."
Americans spend $2.1 billion on hot dogs each year at supermarkets, sporting events and street venues, and Riley thinks she knows why: They taste good, they’re hand-held and portable, and above all, “They’re a food that’s associated with memories. They remind people of picnics, of being at Wrigley Field, birthday parties or camp. It’s a happy food.”
Such nostalgia is one of the aims of Jim Rodgers, chairman of the Little Neck-Douglaston Memorial Day Parade in Queens, N.Y., which bills itself as “arguably the largest Memorial Day parade.” Rodgers counts some 65,000 spectators and 30,000 participants — marching bands, soldiers, sailors, marines and school kids on floats. Still, he says, “We basically morph into Mayberry R.F.D. for a day. It’s wonderful. The whole community comes together to commemorate the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice to keep our country free.”
Though led by a horse-drawn caisson carrying a symbolic flag-draped casket, the Memorial Day parade in Orfordville, Wis., will be considerably smaller, since the town boasts only 1,400 people, including many older veterans. After a period of reflection, rededication, reading of names, and a three-volley firing squad salute at Memorial Park, nearly half the population will shell out $7 for a BBQ chicken or pork-chop dinner at the Kenneth S. Wells American Legion Post. Most businesses will be closed.
“It’s not about making money,” says Kurt Stuvengen, a Navy veteran and vice commander at the post. “The people who go camping, or to a big sale at Penney’s, well, that’s not what Memorial Day is all about. People in Orfordville still celebrate it for what it’s for, to remember the veterans and the servicemen who have passed on.”
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Related Links:
President Obama will skip Memorial Day visit to Arlington National Cemetery (Washington Post)
The First Memorial Day (Cleveland Daily Banner)
Remember our Veterans on Memorial Day (NJ.com)
