NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. — Men and women across the U.S. who lost their lives in service received their flags and flowers.   

Families at Kentucky's own Camp Nelson National Cemetery joined war heroes and more for a Memorial Day tradition. Visitors watched airplanes soar, heard from performers and shared in camaraderie with both new and old faces.  

Carolyn Davis traveled from New York to pay her respects and has attended this service each year since 2015. It's the year she lost her loved one, the U.S. National Guard’s Jessie Trumbo, who was 95 years old.

“In the late '60s, my mother gave him a home," said Davis, who has several family members who are veterans and some still serving. "When she passed away in 2001, I took over the responsibility for caring for him, and I did that until he passed in 2015. And every year since then, I come to this memorial service to visit him.”

She said this cemetery is a special place for all who attend.

“I respect the national cemeteries," Davis said. "They're so well kept, they're well-maintained and serviceable. (It) sort of allows me to meet with him.”

Davis said it’s significant for World War II soldiers like Trumbo.

“World War II veterans, they say, were the greatest generation," she said. "I believe that.”

Others such as Chase Littrall and his family camped around his grandfather Richard Freel's headstone. He said this event helps others understand why this weekend is more significant than just a day off. 

“(Bringing) my 3-year-old, it's just kind of an appreciation moment, more of making him understand that it's more than just that three-day weekend and people gave their lives,” Littrall said. 

With the American flag at half-staff, an orchestra played in the background as people commemorated fallen soldiers on this year's Memorial Day.