Let us remember the beginnings of this holiday: in 1971 it was decided that our country would dedicate the last Monday in May to be a national holiday, known as Memorial Day. The day itself was born from the tragedy of the Civil War, when fellow soldiers and family members in the North and South decorated the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers. Then, in 1868, seeking to formalize this touching tribute, General John Logan, Commander in Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, issued General Order Number 11, designating May 30th, 1868, as Decoration Day, for the purpose of laying flowers and decorating graves of comrades who have died in defense of our nation.

I have served in the House of Representatives for over 15 years and for that entire time I have served on the Veterans Affairs Committee. That is my service, to make sure our servicemen and women get the care they have earned and deserve when they leave the service.

I am reminded of the words of the first president of the United States, George Washington, who said:

``the willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional as to how they perceive the veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their country.''

There are 1,747,076 veterans in Florida. One out of every seven soldiers in the Army is female and are nearly one quarter of Army Reservists. Nearly 40,000 brave African American men and women are currently serving our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan – including more than 6,000 Reservists. One in five soldiers in the active duty Army and nearly one in four Reserve soldiers is Black.

This Memorial Day, we come together to honor those who fell from the line, making the ultimate sacrifice for our country. And we share the grief of those who were left behind. We are not just the beneficiaries of their bravery. We are the stewards of their sacrifice. Today we honor 10 young people who have given the ultimate sacrifice.

This year, as a nation, our resolve must be to let their service renew our mission -- to build a future worthy of their sacrifice. That begins with taking care of those who have defended our country yesterday and today, along with restoring our military – which is the finest in the world -- that has been depleted by the War in Iraq. As a Member of the Veterans Affairs Committee, I will always fight to assure veterans the respect that they have earned.

The 110th Congress has voted to increase veterans’ health care and benefits programs by $12 billion, including the Iraq Supplemental, compared to where we stood when this Congress was sworn in on January 4th of this year. This congress also has provided all service members a pay raise of 3.5 percent -- 0.5 percent more than the President’s budget request.

Throughout the history of our nation, brave men and women have answered the call to defend and protect our democracy. From the War for Independence to today in Iraq and Afghanistan, I am inspired by the courage, professionalism and patriotism of our men and women in uniform.