On Saturday, October 6, there will be a morning rehearsal of the Honor Guards. There may also be an additional rehearsal of the Honor Guards and Pipe Bands in preparation for the Sunday National Memorial Service if needed. All Honor Guard personnel are requested to be in attendance for the morning rehearsal.

On Saturday, honor guard members can also be part of the daylong vigil in the National Memorial Chapel. Families will visit the Chapel to place roses in a Maltese Cross on the altar and light candles in honor of their loved ones.

On Sunday morning, October 7, honor guard members will join in a Sea of Blue through which the families will enter the campus. A procession of honor guard and bagpipe units will begin the national tribute.

The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation invites your Honor Guard Unit or Pipe Band to register to participate during the 31st Annual Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend on October 5 - 7, 2012, in Emmitsburg, Maryland. On this special weekend, a grateful nation will honor the brave men and women who died in the line of duty during 2011 and those who died in previous years and were reported to the Foundation in 2011.

On-campus housing requests will be acted upon with priority being given to those departments having a fallen firefighter being honored in 2012. Departments who do not have a firefighter being honored are responsible for making their off-campus lodging arrangements and paying all associated expenses.

Serving as a member of the Honor Guard or Pipe Band is extremely demanding, requiring your undivided attention and 100% of your time. While we understand the desire to share the experience with loved ones, please do not bring your spouse, or significant other, with the intent of having them accompany you during the weekend. The Candlelight Service on Saturday night and the Memorial Service on Sunday are open to the public, and they are welcome to attend those.

For more information on the 2012 Memorial Weekend, visit our website at weekend.firehero.org. If you have any questions, please contact Eric Nagle at (301) 447-1431 or by email at enagle@firehero.org.

Be a part of the continuing tradition to kick off the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Memorial Weekend. All fire service personnel are invited to attend the placement of a Memorial Wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery on Thursday October 4, 2012. For further information, please contact Amy Marie Beechler at Amy.VAhonorguard@aol.com or Download the Flyer.

In support of the 2012 National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Memorial Weekend, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Fire & Rescue Department Honor Guard invites Honor Guards to participate in a Sea of Blue at Reagan National Airport for the arrival of the United States Honor Flag on Friday October 5, 2012. For further information, please contact Dave Hathaway at ffhathaway@msn.com or Download the Flyer. If you wish to participate but did not indicate so on your registration form, download this form, complete it and return it to Battalion Chief Steven Gervis at (703) 417-8253 no later than September 15, 2012 to comply with security regulations. For questions regarding registration, please contact Chief Gervis via E-mail.

Honor Guard registration will take place on Friday afternoon and evening at Mt. St. Mary's University Knott Arena from 3pm - 10pm. You will be issued your credentials to access the Memorial Weekend events at this time.

The National Honor Guard Commanders Association will hold their annual meeting at 5pm on Friday October 5, 2012 in the log cabin. This meeting is for commanders only and provides an opportunity for honor guard commanders to network with their peers and exchange ideas as well as to discuss issues facing honor guards today.

There will be an Honor Guard and Pipe Band orientation meeting in E Building Auditorium for all personnel at 8am. A mandatory rehearsal for honor guard personnel is scheduled for Saturday immediately following this meeting.

On-campus housing is available for up to four members for departments who have a fallen firefighter being honored in 2012. Local lodging is also available for these departments as well as other departments but goes fast, please make your reservations at a local area hotel as soon as possible.

Regrettably, due to budget cuts, the Foundation will not be providing meals this year. A meal ticket will be available for purchase at a cost of $65.00 to eat in the campus dining hall for the Friday evening meal, all three meals on Saturday and for breakfast and lunch on Sunday. We will provide more information on distribution of the full meal ticket before the Memorial Weekend.

There will be a limited number of individual meal tickets available for purchase. Breakfast meal tickets will be available at a cost of $10/ticket and is good for one breakfast. These tickets may be purchased at the door of the dining hall during breakfast hours. Lunch meal tickets, at a cost of $12/ticket and good for one lunch, will be available for purchase at the Foundation store located in Building B during the hours of 3pm - 8pm on Friday; 9am-6pm on Saturday or on Sunday from 8am-10am or 12pm-2pm. Dinner meal tickets, at a cost of $14/ticket and good for one dinner, will be available for purchase at the Foundation store located in Building B during the hours of 3pm - 8pm on Friday; 9am-6pm on Saturday. Consider purchasing these on Friday evening if you are interested in any of these tickets.