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# Remembering the fallen
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/remembering-the-fallen/
- Published: 2003-05-27T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T02:11:59.000Z
- Author: John Wood
- Tags: Crime, Santa Monica, #archive-import

Nearly 200 people gathered at the Woodlawn Cemetery in Santa Monica on Monday to honor the men and women that have lost their lives defending the United States.

About 140 U.S. soldiers have been killed since last Memorial Day during Operation Iraqi Freedom. About 1 million U.S. soldiers have died throughout the relatively short history of this country.

Monday’s event, which was sponsored by the Santa Monica Elks, began with a color guard procession by the Santa Monica Police Department Rangers and a bagpipe performance by students from Granada Hills High School.

Representatives from the Moose Lodge, Daughters of the American Revolution, Santa Monica Historical Society, Knights of Columbus, the air force, police department, fire department and other organizations laid flowers and wreaths on the “Elk’s Rest,” a patch of grass that symbolizes all those who have died in the line of duty, as well as their loved ones.

Several people read poems and spoke to the small crowd, which was congregated on a sunny patch of grass near the Elks’ mausoleum.

“The one thing we can always go home and remember,” said Doug Randall, chairman of the Santa Monica Elks, “is that freedom is not free.”

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/052703-03_01-7.jpg)

A mother and her daughter lean down to read the grave of a fallen soldier on Monday. (Photo: John Wood/Daily Press)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 27, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/052703.pdf?ref=smdp.com)