The 85th Anniversary Commemoration provides the opportunity to honor the past while looking forward to the future with the same courage of commitment we recognize in the Greatest Generation.

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The USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, and the marble wall in the Shrine Room stands as a rigid symbol of the determined commitment so necessary to the preservation of a fragile peace, and the unflinching courage that will stand firm against any threat to its safekeeping.

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As you walk through the curved entryway that leads to the Shrine Room at the far end of the USS Arizona Memorial, you are confronted with a sense of solemn admiration as you stand peering at the wall with 1,177 names etched in marble. 

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The enduring testimony of Sailors and Marines; young and old, from nearly every state and territory of the United States and from all walks of life. Though often different in background and experience, they shared a common bond, a commitment to serve their country, to defend their homes and their allies and the courage to fulfill their commitment to remain at their battle stations even at the loss of their own lives.  

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They and thousands of other service members and civilians who lost their lives on December 7, 1941, will forever be remembered for that honored devotion to serve others, above self, in defense of freedom.

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On the steps leading up to the hallowed wall are two marble stones with the names of 44 Sailors and one Marine.  These are the crewmen of the USS Arizona who survived the attack and continued the fight until the end of the war.  They lived to see the fruits of the peace that was secured with the sacrifice of the lives of their brothers and friends. 

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From that vantage point, at the foot of the wall, they look up at the names engraved in marble, and we can imagine the respect they held for their fallen comrades and the reverence they must have felt in the remembrance. Though they survived the war, and lived on after peace was restored, the impact of December 7, 1941, is exemplified in their decision to inter their remains with their fallen shipmates in the wreckage below.

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The names of the interred serve as an epitaph of a courageous generation that fought the war to a conclusion, and once the peace was secured committed the rest of their lives to ensuring that no one ever forgets the ultimate price paid by those who never came home.

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This is the generation that committed to building the USS Arizona Memorial, though many years had passed since the conclusion of the war. A commitment to honor the past, and to challenge future generations to always remember the sacrifices made and to inspire the courage necessary to maintain the costly peace.

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One final feature of the Shrine Room is the figure of the Tree of Life sculpted into the memorial on either side of the marble wall; representing the hope of renewal and lasting peace.  

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The light that shines through the Tree of Life, illuminating the names engraved in marble, serves as a beacon to future generations highlighting the sacrifice associated with each individual name, those who perished on December 7,1941, and those who survived and persevered to secure peace for the generations that followed.

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With the memorial as a guide, today’s generation must pick up the mantle of the commitment it represents and invoke the memories of the Greatest Generation to find the courage to remain steadfast in the pursuit of its ideal of lasting peace.