A salute to veterans: STHS’s Missing Man Memorial, explained

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Friday, November 10, 2023

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A salute to veterans: STHS’s Missing Man Memorial, explained

STHS Communication Department, CommDept@stph.org

(Photo by Mike Scott / STHS)

Saturday (Nov. 11) is Veterans Day, and – as has become tradition – St. Tammany Health System’s Spiritual Care team is marking the occasion with a “Missing Man Memorial” set up in the hospital's temporary café to honor those service members who haven’t come home.

Set atop a table adorned with a white tablecloth, the temporary display consists of a variety of items, each of which carries significance.

Below, find an outline of what each item symbolizes, and join the Spiritual Care team in pausing to reflect on the sacrifice made by the men and women who serve or have served in our military, both at home and around the world.

Missing Man Memorial items:

-- A table set for one – with the drinking glass inverted – and a military hat, symbolizing the absent member.

-- A single rose, symbolizing the blood shed to ensure our freedom.

-- A red ribbon, for the love of our country.

-- A lemon, for the bitter fate of the missing.

-- Salt on a bread plate, for the tears shed by waiting loved ones.

-- A Bible, to give us the strength and faith to sustain this loss.

-- An empty chair, to represent the absence of our missing and fallen military members.

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