National Gold Star Mother’s Day was created to recognize and honor those that have lost their son or daughter while serving our country in the United States Armed Forces.

A gold star symbolizes a family member who died in the line of duty while serving the United States Armed Forces. During World War I, a practice developed across the country: Families displayed flags featuring a blue star, a sign that a family member was fighting in the war. Some flags would display more than one star.

The exact origins of this tradition are not fully known, but at some point, gold star flags would go up to signify the family member had died on duty. The term “Gold Star Family” went into the national vocabulary thanks to the sacrifices of men and women serving in uniform.

In 1936, the 74th Congress declared, “the last Sunday in September shall hereafter be designated and known as ‘Gold Star Mother’s Day’, and it shall be the duty of the President to request its observance as provided for in this resolution.”

I ask you to say a prayer for our gold star mothers and their families this weekend and take a moment to remember them.

Joseph Scherer

Roanoke Rapids