20 Photos That Remind Us Freedom Isn’t Free

A soldier in camouflage uniform helps a young boy in a red jacket zip up his coat outdoors on a sunny day, with trees and a yellow building in the background.

Someone’s entire life can be reduced to a statistic. Like 999, the number of Army service members who were killed in action during Operation Enduring Freedom, the initial phase of the War in Afghanistan.

Here’s the thing: One of those 999 meant the world to me. One of those 999 used to trick me into thinking he was magic when I was a kid. When I was a teenager, he hated every boy I ever spoke to. And when I started college and my first real-world job, he would constantly tell me how proud of me he was, and would Skype with me from the desert on slow nights at work. 

My brother, Sgt. Joseph M. Lilly, was killed in action on June 14, 2012 (alongside his friend PFC Trevor Pinnick, who passed two days prior). Since his passing almost 13 years ago, I’ve constantly thought and written about the sacrifices he and so many others made to protect our freedoms. It’s become my mission to always honor and respect those people.

For those who haven’t experienced a loss like this, the statistics might just be numbers. These pictures, however, offer a new perspective on the meaning behind Memorial Day — one that reminds you that freedom comes at a tremendous cost.

1. Honoring Gold Star Families 

Gold Star Families Memorial Monument at sunset, with sun rays shining through a cutout silhouette. The monument honors Gold Star families and relatives who sacrificed a loved one for freedom.
Karen Straffon

The ultimate sacrifice is a soldier who gives his or her life in the line of duty. They make a conscious decision to put their life on the line, knowing they might lose it.

Their families, however, don’t sign up for those risks. They aren’t given their own documents to sign in the recruitment office, and they aren’t on the front lines, acutely aware of the threats of war. Still, when the soldier they love makes the ultimate sacrifice, they lose something profound, too. Those families, dubbed Gold Star Families, deserve to be honored as well. Organizations like TAPS (the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors) provide resources and support for those families, and there are events and monuments tied to the organization — like this monument in Clinton Township, Michigan. 

2. Hug a Hero Dolls

A young boy sleeps in bed under a green blanket, holding a camouflage doll with a photo of a person in military uniform on its face. The setting appears cozy and calm.
Rachel Schneider

Three-year-olds mourn, too. When my brother was alive, he used to make the most animated animal sounds with his son, and I can remember my nephew crowing like a rooster to try to wake his dad up during his funeral visitation. I remember him telling me, “My daddy is in Heaven now, but he’s also in my heart and yours.” He slept with his “Daddy Doll,” shown in the picture above, every night for a long time to give him some comfort after his loss.

3. Coming Home

RedditIsForNoobs2005

There’s no question that the homecoming videos and pictures you see of soldiers returning to their families’ loving arms after deployment are heartwarming. But seeing a soldier come home the alternative way, in a flag-wrapped casket carried by soldiers in their dress blues, is one of those sights you have a visceral reaction to, whether you knew them or not. I can remember standing off to the side of the airstrip when my own brother came home, and a butterfly flew past my face as I watched his casket descend from the plane — it was the first time I saw his spirit and body in two different places.

4. Interchangeable Memorials

A hand holds an ID card with a photo next to a worn combat boot containing a water bottle and a small American flag, all placed on green grass with scattered clover flowers.
SFC Chris Layman

Military bases have their stalwart memorials, and many of them also have different displays, like the Fort Campbell Boot Display, that will be changed out every couple of years to give each of the fallen their deserved honors. This is the last year the Boots Display Memorial will be up, and families have the opportunity to claim the memorial and have it shipped to them.

5. Games and Runs in a Soldier’s Honor

A woman stands outdoors with her back to the camera, holding an American flag. She wears a blue race tank top with a medal around her neck and has a tattoo on her left shoulder. Lush greenery surrounds her.
Ann Marie Keim

Many schools host military nights, where the football players get special jerseys marked with a fallen hero’s name. There is also the “Wear Blue: Run to Remember” race (among other athletic events) dedicated to honoring soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Ann Marie Keim, mother of LTC Christopher Scott, runs every year for Sgt. Joseph Lilly (my brother) and SPC Trevor Pinnick, who both lost their lives in the same mission her son was on.

6. Hugs at the Memorial Day Parade in Washington, D.C.

A man in sunglasses hugs a young person wearing a red "Honor My Hero" shirt at a parade. Behind them, people in matching shirts stand on a float decorated with signs honoring families of fallen heroes.
SappyGilmore

Memorial Day parades are not your typical parade, meant to merely celebrate. Instead, this Washington, D.C. parade honors and remembers those we’ve lost, and offers support and hugs to the ones who mourn them. In this photo, the hugs come from Gary Sinise, who you may best remember as LT. Dan in “Forrest Gump.” 

7. The Arlington Ladies

A woman in black kneels, presenting a folded American flag to elderly seated mourners holding red roses at a cemetery, as uniformed military personnel and others stand nearby during a funeral service.
Time-Training-9404

The Arlington Ladies have attended military funerals held at Arlington National Cemetery since 1948, ensuring no soldier is left without someone to honor and mourn them.

8. Deployment Doesn’t Stop

Three soldiers in uniform stand by a memorial display with boots, rifles, helmets, and flags in a rocky, mountainous area. One more soldier stands to the left, and memorial plaques are visible in the foreground.
Karen Straffon

When my brother and Trevor were killed in Afghanistan, everyone they deployed with didn’t just get to take bereavement time and head home. The deployments don’t end because you lose a couple of brothers. Those men and women are expected to lace their boots back up and complete the job they were deployed to do. Because the military is rooted in camaraderie, though, they do hold memorials for the fallen to allow everyone the opportunity to honor and grieve with the resources they have.

9. On-Base Memorials

A memorial wall displays framed photos of soldiers in uniform, honoring fallen comrades. Above the photos is a wooden plaque that reads, “In Memory of Our Fallen Brothers.”
Rachel Schneider

Head to any military base in the country and you’ll find a memorial devoted to soldiers who were based there but killed in action during deployments. It’s a way to honor their connection to their home base.

10. The Missing Man Table

A round table with military hats, a candle, a rose in a vase, a Bible, a sword, a plate with lemon slices, empty glasses, and three framed photos of soldiers in front of folded American flags.
Katrina Lilly-Allman

Every piece on the Missing Man Table, which is set up at a military ball, holds a deep meaning — a silent tribute to those who never made it home. 

Here’s what each element symbolizes:

The table is round to represent the unending concern for those missing.
The white tablecloth stands for the purity of their intentions when they stepped forward to serve.
The single red rose represents the lives lost and the loved ones who hold onto hope.
The red ribbon is a symbol of our unwavering commitment to finding answers.
The lemon slice speaks to the bitterness of their fate, left behind in foreign lands.
The pinch of salt represents the countless tears shed by families still waiting.
The Bible is a source of strength, a reminder of faith that carries us all through.
The inverted glass shows they can’t join us for a toast.
And the chair, left empty, is the seat they should have claimed.

11. Visiting Memorials

A man in a camouflage vest reading "Combat Vets Association" kneels in front of a wall of engraved military memorial plaques, paying his respects at a veterans' cemetery.
Holly Tanner

Lest we forget, memorials are not just for families to visit. Often, fallen soldiers’ brothers and sisters in arms are unable to visit their actual gravesite, so the memorials near them help give them a tangible place to honor the ones they lost.

12. Wreaths Across America

A man in a red and black jacket kneels beside a gravestone, placing a wreath with a red bow on it in a cemetery. Other decorated graves and a large tree trunk are visible nearby.
Guygan

Wreaths Across America visits military graveyards around the holidays to dress each stone with a festive wreath. Their mission is to “Remember the fallen, honor those who serve, and teach the next generation the value of freedom.”

13. Patriot Guard Riders

A large group of motorcycles and people gather outdoors, with many American flags mounted on bikes and held by attendees, under a clear blue sky. Trees and grass surround the scene.
mrprez180

The Patriot Guard Riders are a dedicated group of volunteers — many of them veterans or motorcycle enthusiasts — who honor the service and sacrifice of America’s military heroes. Their mission is simple but powerful: to show respect for fallen service members, first responders, and honorably discharged veterans by attending their funerals, standing in silent tribute, and shielding grieving families from unwanted disruptions when needed. I speak from firsthand experience that seeing a trove of bikers surround a funeral procession will take your breath away.

14. Not All Sacrifices Are Ultimate

A group of soldiers in camouflage uniforms pose together outdoors, all wearing red and white Santa hats in front of a concrete wall with a red castle emblem.
Sgt. Joseph Lilly

Yes, Memorial Day is a day to honor the fallen, but it’s important to recognize all the sacrifices these soldiers make, whether or not they lose their lives in the process. While we were opening presents in our cozy home on Christmas, my brother and the rest of his unit said, “Cheese” in Santa hats to send a Christmas greeting back home from Afghanistan.

15. Taking the Time To Honor

A small round table is set for one with a white tablecloth, an American flag, a red rose in a vase, a candle, a Bible, and a POW-MIA flag draped over the chair. A patriotic folding screen is in the background.
Holly Tanner

This military family created a designated POW MIA table at their wedding, ensuring they found a way to weave in their respect and honor for those soldiers on their special day.

16. Strangers Showing Kindness

A large group of people, including veterans in uniform and bikers in vests, stand together outside on a sunny day. One person holds an American flag, and some attendees have their hands over their hearts.
Toni Mitts

This picture is of the outside of the funeral home during my brother’s service. The room where the service was held was full. The waiting area outside that room was full. So the rest of the people filled the parking lot, listening to the proceedings over the outdoor speakers. Some people who had only briefly met my brother attended his funeral, and there were people there who never knew him at all, but they wanted to pay their respects to someone they considered a local hero. There were even adults and kids standing on the side of the road as we made our way to the cemetery, holding American flags to show their respect. 

17. Leaving Coins on Gravestones 

A woman kneels at a white gravestone in a military cemetery, smiling, with one hand on the stone. Flowers and an American flag are placed by the grave, and rows of similar headstones stretch into the background.
Holly Tanner

Leaving coins on military graves is a quiet, powerful tradition — a way to honor fallen service members and let their families know someone was there. Each coin carries a different meaning, depending on the denomination:

A penny means someone stopped by to pay their respects.

A nickel means the visitor trained with the service member.

A dime signifies that the visitor served with them in some capacity.

A quarter means the person was there when the service member died.

18. Funeral Formalities

A military honor guard carries a flag-draped casket at a funeral, watched by mourners standing in line and people holding American flags. The scene takes place outdoors on a sunny day.
Toni Mitts

Folded-up flags. 21-gun salutes. “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes. American flags and soldiers wearing dress blues everywhere you look. Military funerals are riddled with traditional formalities that will bring you to tears, whether you knew the soldier or not. You don’t realize how much time, care, and effort is put into these services until you’ve participated in one. My family was even provided a liaison to turn to for any questions or support we needed.

19. Sharing a Cold One

A hand holds a can of Bud Light in front of a framed newspaper article titled "'It was worth it to him,'" about Joseph Lilly, a soldier who died in Afghanistan, with a small photo of Joseph Lilly in the article.
Ann Marie Keim

Sometimes, the only thing to do is to crack a cold one in memory of the soldier you lost, whether at their gravesite or at home scrolling through pictures of them. 

20. Forming a Relationship With a Stone

A young boy in a red shirt leans over a white gravestone in a cemetery, with flowers and a ribbon placed at the base of the headstone on green grass under a clear sky.
Rachel Schneider

I used to visit my brother by walking down the hallway, turning left into the kitchen, and trudging down the stairs into his poorly-lit basement bedroom. Then, I took a road trip with him to visit his house in Fort Leonardwood, Missouri. Visiting a cold stone just isn’t the same, but when that and your memories are the only options, you bring flowers, coins, Johnny Walker Black (the only occasion I’ll ever be able to slug that down), and your bravest face, and you just … visit. 

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If these stirring images reminded you of the sacrifices behind our freedoms, march over to 10 Valuable World War II Collectibles to see battlefield treasures that fetch top dollar, inspect 10 Valuable Vietnam War Collectibles for relics that honor a later generation of heroes, and take aim at 19 Photos of Antique and Iconic Firearms that echo America’s fighting spirit.

Author
Rachel Schneider

Rachel is a Michigan-based writer with a bachelor’s degree in Professional Writing and English. Throughout her career, she has dabbled in a variety of subject matter from finance and higher education to lifestyle pieces and food writing. She also enjoys writing stories based on social media trends. Find her on Instagram @rachel.schneider922