Flags and flowers from family and friends for Memorial Day

Flags and flowers from family and friends adorn the grave markers of loved ones in honor of Memorial Day weekend at Desert Lawn Memorial Park on South Union Street in Kennewick.

A Memorial Day ceremony sponsored by VFW Kennewick Post #5785 is scheduled for 11 a.m. at the cemetery. A ceremony is also planned at 11 a.m. at Sunset Gardens off Highway 240 in Richland.

The federal holiday, observed on the last Monday of May, pays tribute to the military personnel who have died in the performance of their military duties while serving in the United States Armed Forces.

Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official holiday in 1971.