Chick-fil-A Pays Tribute to Fallen Servicemen with 'Missing Man Table'
With Memorial Day having just passed, the sacrifice of men and women serving our country is still fresh on many people’s minds.
Many companies find special ways to remember the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice.
If you walked into a Chick-fil-A location this Memorial Day, you may have seen a single table set up. This table goes by many names, but the National League of POW/MIA Families calls it a “Missing Man Table.”
Chick-fil-A store managers have adapted the beautiful tribute for their stores, but the full ceremony can be found online.
A framed list sitting on the table explains the significance of each element featured on the table.
“As you entered the room, you may have noticed a special table; it is reserved to honor our missing men,” the list begins.
The white table cloth draped over the table represents a missing person’s pure intentions when entering the call of duty.
Two things sitting on the table cloth are a red rose for the lives of the missing and their loved ones and a Bible representing “the strength gained through faith to sustain us and those lost from our country.”
A lemon and a mound of salt also sit on a plate in the middle of the place setting. The lemon represents the heroes’ bitter fate while the salt serves as a reminder of the tears shed.
Next to the plate, sits an inverted glass “to symbolize their inability to share a toast.”
And lastly, an empty chair reserved for those who never returned.
This beautifully haunting display is especially important for Jacksonville-area store manager and retired Navy Commander Marinus Storm.
Commander Storm has made a point to set up a “Missing Man Table” at his store since it opened in 2004. It can be found on different military holidays throughout the year, but it holds a deeper meaning on Memorial Day.
“Memorial Day is a somber holiday — it’s really about the fallen. The current or recent service members who come into our restaurant are really affected by this,” he said.
He takes it as an opportunity to not only remember those that have died or gone missing while in service, but to also teach those who may not understand the importance of that sacrifice.
Commander Storm said, “There’s no doubt this is an opportunity to teach people, specifically those who don’t have any connection to the military, about the sacrifices our service members make and that those losses last.”
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