Mindful Memorial DayJoin BVN at 8:00 am AND 8:00 pm CST as we honor the names of 1,000 of the 7,025 lives lost in war since 9/11.
The Mindful Memorial Day observance was created by Ben King in 2013 to honor fallen warriors through mindfulness, specifically through Mindful Moments of Gratitude. Honoring the sacrifices of fallen warriors has always been a time-honored tradition in the United States. It is an occasion where opening the heart is socially acceptable and culturally appropriate. With the inclusion of mindfulness, honoring the fallen becomes a powerful practice that places focus on mental health, which is a pervasive issue in the veteran community.
Mindful Memorial Day was also founded to raise awareness within the civilian community of the tremendous sacrifices made by service members whose sworn duty is to uphold and protect the values that constitute the United States of America. Therefore, the ultimate aim of Mindful Memorial Day is two-fold: to honor all post-9/11 fallen service members with a Mindful Moment of Gratitude and to strengthen the relationship between warriors and civilians by providing an opportunity to express gratitude and develop mutual understanding.
The nonprofit 501(c)3, Mindful Memorial Foundation (MMF) was established to present Mindful Memorial Day on an annual basis. Activities occur over Memorial Day weekend at the Military Women’s Memorial at the gates of Arlington National Cemetery. Central components to Mindful Memorial Day consist of Honor Visits to the graves of all post-9/11 fallen warriors in Section 60 and individual and group gratitude observances. These activities culminate on Saturday of the Mindful Memorial Day weekend at the Military Women’s Memorial with the Fallen Warrior Ribbon Memorial. Since 2020, MMF has broadened these efforts by encouraging people to honor fallen warriors online and in local gatherings as well.
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