BOSTON -- Americans from former presidents to friends and family of military service members are marking Thursday's Veterans Day holiday by spotlighting the contributions of Medal of Honor recipients.

Currently, there are 66 living recipients of the honor, the military's highest award for valor in combat.

Chris Cassidy, CEO of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation, a retired U.S. Navy SEAL and NASA astronaut, is raising awareness about the museum, set to break ground next year.

"The truth of the matter is that we have 66 living, and that number is getting smaller with each year, just by nature of their age, and so now's the time to build it," Cassidy contented.

Massachusetts is the birthplace of four of the living recipients, including Captain Robert Franklin Foley and Lieutenant Thomas Gunning Kelly, both of whom served and earned their medals during Vietnam, and Sergeant Ryan M. Pitts and Senior Chief Britt Kelly Slabinski, both veterans of the War in Afghanistan.

Cassidy noted the tradition of military service runs deep in the Commonwealth.

"Massachusetts has a fundamental role in the birth of our nation," Cassidy explained. "And the Medal of Honor recipients have allowed our nation to be what it is, with the roots right there in Massachusetts."

The Foundation is also advocating for a national monument dedicated to the recipients of the Medal in Washington, D.C. It has been unanimously approved by the U.S. House and is now up to the Senate.

Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama joined forces to make a public-service announcement about the museum during the recent "Salute to Service" National Football League game between the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos.

"Of the estimated 40 million people who have served in the U.S. military since the Civil War, fewer than 4,000 have received the honor," Obama stated.

During next Monday's game against Cleveland, New England Patriots players will be wearing the initials of ten Fallen Heroes on their helmets to recognize their sacrifices.

Five properties are newly added to the New Hampshire State Register of Historic Places this Historic Preservation Month.

The list includes two cemeteries, an old academy building and town firehose house, a 1720s Colonial-style home and what used to be a dairy barn.

Lake View Cemetery in Center Harbor overlooks the Bay, and is known as a well-preserved example of an early 19th-century rural cemetery. Union Cemetery in Portsmouth is smaller and urban, and was established in 1844.

Ben Wilson - state historic preservation officer and director of the New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources - noted that cemeteries can be some of the most valuable historical resources.

"Cemeteries are sort of a microcosm of society, and they have a lot to tell us about our local communities - about fashion, about art," said Wilson. "A lot of cemeteries contain public sculpture and really speak about who we are as a people."

Wilson said the Boscawen Academy structure represents the age of academy building - he said academies in New England were the predecessors of today's public and private school systems.

From the 1720s, the John Gregg House is the only remaining home of the original 20 Irish-Scottish families who settled in Nutfield. And New Hampshire's farm heritage is represented in the Houston Barn on the outskirts of Hopkinton.

Wilson added that preserving some of New Hampshire's older buildings can bring environmental benefits.

"We often talk about how we become more energy efficient and try to find ways to conserve energy, deal with climate change," said Wilson. "And really, one of the most energy-efficient buildings is the building that's already built. "

Renovating existing buildings for energy efficiency almost always uses less energy than building from scratch, according to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Wilson added that the New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources has launched a 'historic highway marker quest' - if folks visit at least ten highway markers this month, they can fill out a form on the website and receive a prize.

On Thursday, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon is expected to sign a proclamation declaring May of 2022 Historic Preservation Month, part of a national celebration dating back to 1973.

Carrie Edinger, historical program manager with the Sheridan Community Land Trust, said Wyoming has a wealth of buildings and sites where historic events can be remembered. She encouraged residents of all ages to get out and explore their local and regional history.

"If we talk about it and share our memories and those stories, or what items need help being preserved," said Edinger, "it's not only helping to save it and preserve it, but also keep it alive."

Every May, historical societies, preservation groups, and business and civic organizations across the U.S. celebrate Historic Preservation Month through events that promote historic places and heritage tourism, and that demonstrate the economic and social benefits of preservation.

This May marks the fourth annual celebration organized by the Alliance for Historic Wyoming. A complete list of events is available at historicwyoming.org.

Edinger's group has planned a bus tour of the Black Diamond Trail on Tuesday, exploring the region's history of mining millions of tons of coal from seams up to 40 feet thick for trains and power plants.

Edinger also encouraged folks to sign up for a hands-on preservation experience set for Saturday at the Historic Monarch Lutheran Cemetery just off Interstate 90 north of Sheridan.

"Everything from weed eating, cleaning or maintaining the headstones," said Edinger. "And we're also going to do some documentation of the cemetery. We will be creating a map of the cemetery layout."

Volunteers will be spot-checking names on tombstones against a list created by the Sheridan County Library's Wyoming Room.

For anyone interested in learning more about historical preservation, Edinger suggested reaching out to nearby museums and historic groups. She said preservation groups such as the Trust are always looking for curious volunteers.

"Volunteers help with events, they sometimes help with research, and they are also presenters for the Explore History program," said Edinger. "So there's many ways to volunteer, depending on skill level and interest, there's always something to do."

The Montana historical meme contest is back and history has never felt so relevant in the internet age.

The Montana State Library began the contest in 2020 at the start of the pandemic. Participants get to sift through the Montana Memory Project's 35,000 photos to create fun images out of history.

Jennifer Birnel, director of Montana Memory Project, said the contest is an opportunity for people to learn more about the state.

"We want people to understand the depth of our history - as well as our culture," said Birnel. "So both of those things play a big part of it. And a lot of our content is very historical in nature, but we also some much more modern pieces of content as well."

The Montana State Library suggests using a meme generator online, which can be found on the Montana Meme-ory contest page. The contest is broken down into three age groups - 10 to 18, 19 to 40, and 41 to 120.

All entries must be submitted by May 13. May is historic preservation month.

Birnel said there have been some fun winners in their past two contests, including an entry from a former employee from the Montana Historical Society.

"He said, 'Leroy always fancied himself a chick magnet,' and it was a picture of a man feeding his chickens," said Birnel, "which I thought was great."

Library staff will select finalists for the contest and then the public will get to vote for the winners May 20 through 27.

Winners will receive history-themed grab bags of prizes, including four buy-one-get-one-free tickets to the Montana Historical Society and prints from Montana artists Charlie Russell and Stan Lynde.