“This day is set aside to honor the courageous souls who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Their valor ignites a flame of gratitude in our hearts, a beacon guiding us towards unity, peace, and remembrance. Let us pause, reflect, and renew our commitment to honoring their legacy by upholding the values they fought so hard to protect. May their sacrifice never be forgotten, and may their spirit inspire us to strive for a better tomorrow.”
Now celebrated on the last Monday of May, the first form of Memorial Day in the United States began after the Civil War as a day to honor and remember those who made the final full measure of devotion while serving in the Armed Forces. Following WWII, Pūowaina was designated the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific with the first Memorial Day Ceremony held within the crater in 1949. Since that first humble ceremony, City and County of Honolulu has been honored to work with numerous veteran, community, and educational organizations to help facilitate this time-honored tradition. If you’ve never experienced this somber ceremony, we invite you to watch the live coverage of the 73rd iteration of this event presented by ‘Ōlelo Community Media.
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Memorial Day Poster Contest
Congratulations to the winners of the 2025 Mayor’s Memorial Day Poster Contest!
This year the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation received 44 entries, with 13 keiki receiving accolades in their respective grade levels.
Mahalo to all of the keiki artists, their ‘ohana, art teachers, and participating schools for taking part in this annual tradition. Special thanks to Hōkūlani, Hanalani, ‘Ewa Makai Middle, and Kailua Intermediate schools for their significant support and contributions to this contest.
This annual contest challenges all school-age keiki to craft their best visual representation of our “Sew a Lei for Memorial Day” effort, to place a fresh lei on the approximately 38,000 graves within the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Pūowaina (Punchbowl) for the annual Mayor’s Memorial Day Ceremony.
Each year keiki artists are invited to create a unique depiction of lei-making activities or ceremonial actions of the Mayor’s Memorial Day Ceremony at Pūowaina, such as the lei-sewing, military salutes, or other patriotic symbols. We encourage all students to participate in this contest, and we hope all educators see this as an educational and creative opportunity to highlight our talented keiki artists, while also showing appreciation for those who perished in the line of duty.
Winning artists and their posters will be celebrated through various media, and will take part in a Mayoral recognition ceremony where certificates and prizes are awarded!
Ceremony Details
The 74th Mayor’s Memorial Day Ceremony is tentatively scheduled for Monday, May 26, 2025 beginning at 8:30 a.m. within the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Pūowaina (Punchbowl). Additional details about how to observe the ceremony will be announced at a later time.
The event features several ceremonial presentations and tributes, including: oli (chant), speeches from Mayor Rick Blangiardi & other dignitaries, color guard, presentation of wreaths, firearm salute, military aircraft flyover, playing of taps, performances from the Royal Hawaiian Band, Sounds of Aloha, and hula from the Lei Court.
Sew a Lei for Memorial Day
For over seven decades the City and County of Honolulu has honored a solemn promise to adorn every grave at Pūowaina with a fresh lei for Memorial Day. This uniquely Hawaiian display of gratitude is our way of saying “mahalo” to our veterans for their service.
However, we can’t do this alone. We solicit the help of numerous organizations and volunteers across the state to make and gather 38,000 lei for every servicemember laid to rest at the cemetery. Along with this significant task, the City is hoping to assist the Hawai‘i State Veterans Cemetery in Kāne‘ohe with their Memorial Day ceremony by donating extra lei to help them adorn the graves of the 15,000 servicemembers laid to rest on those hallowed grounds. To reach these remarkable goals, you are invited to donate lei (made of fresh flowers/ti leaf, measuring 20-22 inches untied, please tie), lei flowers (preferably plumeria or crown flower), Anthurium bouquets, or attend one of the lei-making opportunities below (site will be updated with more information soon)
Ahead of the lei-sewing events described below, volunteers and our park staff help gather plumeria to supply lei-sewing sites around O‘ahu. Many hands working together make for light work, and this community effort is a great example of that mentality!
Lei Drop-off Sites
Join our Parks & Recreation staff in showing your appreciation for those who sacrificed for our country by helping to Sew Lei for Memorial Day! If you can’t volunteer your time, we also take flower donations, particularly plumeria. Feel free to drop-off your flower donations at any of the lei-sewing sites listed to the left.
We encourage everyone to make their own lei-making workshop and drop-off their lei at one of these designated locations! The lei need to be 20″-22″ when untied (please tie them). It is preferable to make flower lei which are more visible on the gravestones (particularly plumeria), but ti leaf lei will work as well. Floral spray, such as ti leaf and anthurium bouquets, are welcome.
Graduating students and their families are encouraged to donate their fresh flower/ti-leaf lei from their celebrations to any of the lei-sewing locations or drop-off sites. It’s a great way to give your lei a second life, while showing your appreciation for our fallen servicemembers.
The Scouts of Hawaiʻi will place the lei from the “Sew a Lei for Memorial Day” effort and an American flag on every grave within Pūowaina on Sunday, May 25 during their Good Turn Event at 1 p.m.
Following the Memorial Day Ceremony, the Scouts will return to Pūowaina to remove the lei and American flags. Volunteers are encouraged to join in this effort on Tuesday, May 27 beginning at 9 a.m.
Mahalo in advance for your kokua!
