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Memorial Day often signifies the “unofficial start of summer” frequently celebrated with tasty barbecues, pool parties, and unashamedly eating as many cool dairy treats as we can stand.

However, amidst the freedom we feel from having an extra day off work, no more school, or even the excitement of upcoming summer trips we often forget to remember and truly honor the thousands of U.S. service members who sacrificed their lives for the sake of our freedom. 
But how can our “remembering” of those who died in service to our nation extends beyond a brief thought in our downtime or a rushed prayer before chowing down on a grilled hot dog or hamburger? 

Learn - Spend some time by yourself or with your family brushing up on your knowledge of Memorial Day and its history (as it’s often mixed up with Veterans Day). Here are a few facts to get you started in your deep dive into our nation's fallen heroes. 
Memorial Day was originally observed on May 30, 1868, as Decoration Day when people would decorate the graves, often with flowers, of fallen Civil War soldiers buried at Arlington National Cemetary. After World War I this extended to both men and women who had died in U.S. military service. 
If you know of someone with a Gold Star, they’re a family member of a service member who has died while in the line of duty. According to USO, The “Gold Star Family” designation “honors that service member’s ultimate sacrifice while acknowledging their family’s loss, grief, and continued healing.” 
The Tomb of the Unkown Soldier is a white marble sarcophagus that sits on top of a hill in Arlington National Cemetary and is the cemetery’s most iconic historical memorial. It’s guarded 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, to honor the unidentified U.S soldiers who gave their lives in the line of duty.  
Pray - Actually, intentionally pray. Pray in thanksgiving and gratitude for the service members who made the ultimate sacrifice. Pray for the families of our nation’s heroes who have passed away. Pray for our country now and the future of our country. Pray for the soldiers who are still serving in active duty and are putting their lives at risk every day. Pray for peace. 
Give - If you know of an individual or family who has lost a loved one in the line of duty, stop by and offer them flowers, a meal, or simply a hug to let them know you’re thinking about them and their fallen loved one, as this time can be especially hard for them. 
On GiveSendGo you can find families fundraising to hold a memorial service of a loved one who died while in service, to make a donation to a charity in their fallen loved one’s name, or simply to help afford the cost of living in their loved one’s absence. 
No matter the amount, donate to their campaign and/or leave a prayer message on their campaign. 
Visit - Honor a family member who gave their lives in the line of duty or even a fallen service member you may not know by bringing flowers and/or spending some time in prayer at their grave. 
To find a cemetery near you and honor our nation’s fallen heroes visit the National Cemetary Administration at https://www.cem.va.gov/find-cemetery/. 
Join - Wherever you are at 3:00 p.m. on Memorial Day pause and share a moment of silence with others across the nation to honor our nation’s fallen heroes. 

You can also display the American Flag (if you aren’t already) outside of your home. According to Military One Source, the U.S. flag is flown at half-staff from dawn until noon on Memorial Day while many across the nation fly their POW/MIA flags to also honor those missing in action and prisoners of war. 
Wearing a red poppy on Memorial Day is also a popular way to honor those who have passed while serving. 
This Memorial Day, let’s truly honor, remember, and praise God for our nation’s fallen heroes who gave the ultimate sacrifice. 
John 15:13 (ESV) says this, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” 

Chapter One: Tragedy Strikes! 

Things begin to fall apart and the situation you’re in seems to be getting worse before it gets better. It almost feels like a plot to a twisted book. Is there any end to this chapter, to this book even? We’ve all had moments where everything seems to be falling apart.

At GiveSendGo we often see these narratives play out in campaigns across our platform, people all over the world stuck in hopeless situations. 

But, isn’t that the start of every great story? The protagonist is faced with some problem they just can’t seem to get past and just before they give up someone comes along and guides them down the right path, the path to victory, the path to their happy ending. 

In this story, there are many heroes, and, guess what, you’re one of them! 

First, the campaign owner.

This person is the one who creates the GiveSendGo campaign. Maybe they see a need, whether in their own life, or in the life of someone they know in their church, community, or family. They simply see a need and have a desire to fill that need. 

This is where GiveSendGo comes into the narrative. We see your need and come alongside you as a guide, providing a platform where you can raise money for that very need. We want to do everything in our power to see your campaign successful at the end of your journey. In faith, you step out, with us as your guide, and you begin raising funds for that need. The future ahead of you and full of possibilities. 

And sure, raising money is an intimidating, confusing thing. That’s why it’s important to us to provide a safe, reliable, and free platform where you feel confident voicing your needs and raising money. The journey may also be long and sometimes discouraging when there’s no end in sight. That’s why GiveSendGo provides encouragement in the form of prayer partners who will call you, and other campaign owners, to pray for you and your campaign. 

But every story has supporting roles, characters the protagonist couldn’t succeed without. They’re heroes too and ones you’ll be glad to journey alongside. 

This next hero is the Giver.

Givers are essential to keeping the story alive and moving forward through the donations they make to GiveSendGo campaigns. Without them and their donations, you would never make it to your end fundraising goal. These are the people with hearts of generosity and kindness, who simply want to give what they can to someone whose story touched their heart. 

No matter how much each giver is able or willing to give, we always encourage them that their donations make an impact in the lives of thousands of people on our platform. In fact, the Givers Army is made up of a community of these givers who have pledged to give to campaigns each month. We celebrate our Army of Givers by having annual parties, sending them a thank-you package in the mail, and more! It’s a community any giver can join! 

GiveSendGo would like to thank all the heroes on our platform! If you’ve chosen GiveSendGo as your fundraising platform, we’re honored to be a part of your story and to help you in your journey to raising money and meeting a large community of givers who will play such an integral part in your story! We can’t wait to see how your journey unfolds! We hope you’ll also consider giving to someone else’s cause and be a part of their amazing story, as well! 

We received this message under on one of our social media platforms recently, and know it is a question that runs through many peoples mind.  We decided to share how we answered it

Can we raise money for atheist causes on this platform?

GiveSendGo response: 
Hi Matthew, great question. Not sure if you are asking to start a controversy or because you are really curious about our crowdfunding site , but either way we are glad you contacted us. We believe that there is a God that loves you more than you can even imagine and that is displayed all throughout our site, our emails, and all the contact we will have with you. We would love the chance to share God's love with you through our site and all your donors would get a little bit of who we are on their receipts etc. as long as your campaign is being used to share hope in our world then it would be allowed. We will be praying for you as you decided whether we are a good fit for your campaign and if you decide not then we can send over some suggestions on alternate sites available. Shine brightly!