Governor Asa Hutchinson's Weekly Address

Monday is Memorial Day, and this week, hundreds of volunteers are placing an American flag in front of every gravestone in each of Arkansas’s five military cemeteries. We observe Memorial Day, which began shortly after the end of the Civil War, to honor the memory of those who died in service to the United States. The flags honor everyone who served in one of the five branches of our military – the Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marines, and the Navy. The three national cemeteries are in Little Rock, Fort Smith, and Fayetteville. The state’s Veterans Cemeteries are in North Little Rock and Birdeye. On Wednesday, just five days before Memorial Day, the commander of all U.S. military special operations asked to visit the Fort Smith National Cemetery. It was General Richard Clarke, who is the 12th commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, and he wanted to visit the grave of General William O. Darby. General Darby is a native of Fort Smith, and a graduate of Fort Smith Senior High and West Point. In 1942,