Young find meaning in Memorial Day tradition

John Kelhetter Jr. paused and saluted each veteran's headstone as he walked quietly from one to the next Saturday morning in Long Island National Cemetery, adding his own special tribute as hundreds of people fanned out to place American flags on more than 287,000 graves there.

"I'm saluting because the soldiers are an honor to America," said John, 7, who was among crowds of Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, veterans and others participating in the pre-Memorial Day tradition that goes back more than three decades.

"They protected us," he said. "It means you should thank the soldiers."

His father, John Kelhetter, of Lynbrook, said the second-grader's motions were all his own idea. "It stirs me up on the inside," he said as he watched his son. "He understands that this means something."

Starting about 7 a.m., children, teenagers and adults worked for nearly three hours in the 364-acre cemetery in Pinelawn, carefully pressing the small flags into the ground at each grave site.

John Benson, 42, traveled with several Cub Scouts from Pack 192, based in Bellmore.

"We try to teach our boys that Memorial Day isn't just about picnics," Benson said standing among the thousands of neatly aligned white tombstones. "These are people who served the United States and helped keep us free."

Benson, himself an Army veteran who was stationed most of his time in Alaska, and his son, John Benson III, 10, have been laying flags at the cemetery for five years, he said.

The younger Benson said the veterans are the reason "we still have freedom."

Members of Girl Scout Troop 1100, Service Unit 20, based in Copiague, also participated.

"We are paying them back for what they did for us," Madison Daal, 9, said shortly after covering a section of the cemetery established in 1936.

Mary Thompson, 56, of Amityville, brought her grandson, Donte Riggsbee, 7, a Boy Scout in Copiague's Troop 154.

"This is a token of appreciation for giving up their lives," Thompson said, holding dozens of flags still to be placed.

Groups have gathered to place the flags for more than 30 years, said Roseann Santore, director of Long Island National Cemetery.

"We put flags on each grave to show patriotism, respect and dignity," she said.

On June 4, volunteers will return to the cemetery to remove the flags. They will be stored until the same time next year, Santore said.