Memorial Day always comes at the end of May, which, coincidentally, has also been celebrated the last 16 years as Jewish American Heritage Month.

Earlier this month, I participated in the observance of another Memorial Day—in Israel—where the experience is quite different.

Yom Hazikaron is solemnly observed in a nationwide ceremony. In the evening, and again in the morning, the entire country—pedestrians, office workers, shoppers in stores and indoor and outdoor markets, diners at restaurants, bathers at the beach, drivers of cars and buses and trucks on streets and highways—all come to a silent standstill for the duration of a minutes-long wail of sirens, before normal life resumes.

Perhaps this universal respect is shown because military service is such an important part of Israeli life. Virtually all Jewish citizens, as well as non-Jews who volunteer (in increasing numbers), perform military service. Moreover, every generation in Israel’s 74-year history has known war, and many families have lost a loved one in one of those wars.

Here, by contrast, in a country that no longer has universal military training, Memorial Day has become just another three-day weekend. It used to be called Decoration Day, because that was when families visited and “decorated” the graves of veterans with an American flag or flowers. Today, it’s mainly an opportunity for parades, barbecues, big sales at the mall, accidents on our highways, and the unofficial opening of pools and beaches for summer. It has lost its traditional meaning, except for those dwindling few who recall a family member lost in battle long ago.

That’s why we, the Dan Michelson Post, of the Jewish War Veterans of the United States—the oldest veterans’ organization in America—participate in this service each year, calling out the names of our local Jewish veterans who have passed away. It’s not that these veterans were lost in battle, although many did see wartime service. Rather, it’s just a reminder that these neighbors of ours gave up a portion of their lives and careers by stepping forward, when duty called, to defend our nation. Their names should not be forgotten.

Peter Berkowsky is a retired attorney and retired Air Force officer residing in Livingston, and co-founder and co-director of the International Minyan for NYC Marathoners.