Visitors honor the fallen at Lakewood Cemetery this Memorial Day

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - This Memorial Day, thousands of people honored the fallen at ceremonies across the state.

Friends and families braved the weather to pay their respects at Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis.

Iraq War Army veteran Brandon Morter is in town from Texas to visit his great-grandmother buried at Lakewood Cemetery.

“It doesn’t matter the rain or temperatures, you come out to pay the respects so we can live the way we can,” Morter said.

While Morter is the first in his family to serve, others used Monday to honor loved ones who already wore the uniform, like Paul Spika and Nancy Miller.

“My father was in the military,” Miller said. “Just hearing all the stories of the veterans and all the people of service, it makes you sad, and it makes you happy they were there.”

“My uncle Jim was a Korea and WWII veteran,” Spika said.

Many laid flowers next to the flag-marked headstones of services members.

“Freedom isn’t free, and you have to take those few moments to remember what they’ve done for us,” said Chris Makowske, President of Lakewood Cemetery.

Across the Twin Cities, residents and visitors certainly put those moments to use, with some honoring the fallen at Ft. Snelling National Cemetery.

“You look at the flag, you know that there’s people who gave lives for that flag,” Morter said.