(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – Communities across the Chicago region marked Memorial Day with services Monday to honor service members who made the ultimate sacrifice.
In Chicago, elected leaders gathered in Grant Park to recognize General John A. Logan (1826-1886), the founder of the holiday, in a local tradition that dates back to 1996.
But it's complicated, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said. Logan, an Illinois native and state legislator and Civil War veteran, supported slavery early in his political career before changing those views, according to the National Park Service.
"We live in a complicated country with a complicated history, and we shouldn't pretend that the people who we honor are perfect," Preckwinkle said. "We honor [Logan] for being the founder of Decoration Day/Memorial Day, but we shouldn't forget his past and the state's past."
Also Monday, Arlington Heights honored its fallen service members, as the northwest suburban community has done for more than a century. Gold Star families were among those gathered at Memorial Park for the hour-long ceremony.
"At every Gold Star family's house, there's an empty seat at the dinner table," said Katie Stack, who lost her husband, Marine Lance Cpl. James Bray Stack, in Afghanistan almost 13 years ago.
Stack's daughter, Mikayla, rang a bell near the village's eternal flame for each of its 59 service members who died serving their country.
For the first time, a Civil War soldier joined those in the Arlington Heights tribute.
Pvt. John Sieburg, a dispatch rider and orderly in the 8th Illinois Cavalry, was killed three months after the Battle of Gettysburg.
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