Plant a Tree

• Make a special raised bed to plant a tree in honor of a fallen soldier.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  For decades, people have planted trees in honor of the casualties of war. You can plant one in your own yard and order a special plaque to commemorate your fallen loved one. Alternatively, contact your city's government offices to inquire about planting a tree in a community park. Hold a small ceremony and invite loved ones to remember the soldier. In World War II alone, there were 405,399 American casualties. Organizing states to plant a tree for each of them would result in beautiful forests.
  
  

Contribute to a War Memorial

• The names of Vietnam soldiers who died in battle are on the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C.Comstock/Comstock/Getty Images
  
  War memorials are located all over the world in different forms, from statues to buildings. You can contribute monetary funds or volunteer time to these organizations. Your financial donations can be done as a tribute to the soldier you loved. If you have a local memorial that is under construction, consider giving your time. Or, locate the memorial for the particular war your loved one fought in, and contact the administrators to learn how you can participate in keeping the memorial going. Some large memorials are funded by government organizations and others are privately funded.
  
  

Make a Home Shrine

• Lighting a candle symbolizes the love you still carry as well as the light your soldier was in life.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Build a small home shrine featuring your soldier's photograph, candles and special religious or spiritual objects. Include symbols and tokens of the things the soldier loved, such as sports memorabilia, medals, favorite sunglasses, car keys, postcards of vacation places and so forth. These can sometimes move you to deep grief that will allow healing tears to flow. They also help especially for those who live too far from or don't have a cemetery site to visit. Light candles, burn incense and place fresh flowers when special days come around on the calendar.
  
  

Make a Quilt

• Remember the names of the departed.Chris Hondros/Getty Images News/Getty Images
  
  War quilts began during the Civil War; however, people from many embattled countries gather in community to build a remembrance quilt, much like that of the Aids Quilt that travels around from place to place. Organize a quilting group in your city or town, broadcast your plans to suitable organizations and on the Internet. Gather people to either sew the quilt together or to build their own defined-size square with the names of the soldiers, the wars they fought and symbols that express who they were in life.