Rose
Inside this capsule: a seed of Rose — and a story of friendship that began in 1950. Drag the capsule to face its label; the QR code is real.
The flower of United States
Photo: Peggy Greb
The national floral emblem of the United States — a flower of remembrance and devotion, laid at memorials from Washington to Seoul.
Flower meaning
In the language of flowers the rose speaks of love, honor and remembrance — laid at gravesides, given in gratitude, planted in promise.
Growing your seed
Free the seed from its compostable kraft shell, then give it what rose asks for:
Watch it grow
Frank Abasciano joined the military in 1947 before the war in Korea broke out. While he had intended on playing football in college, he quickly discovered that he was not welcome in the South and decided to pursue the military. While in Korea, he found himself in some of the most notorious battles of the…
A voice from United States’s service in Korea · More on Korean War Legacy Foundation
American veterans of Korea long called theirs “the forgotten war.” It is not forgotten here. Each rose grown from this capsule stands for a promise kept between allies, and for the veterans and families who still tend that friendship today.
“We Remember. We Grow Together.”
Voices from the archive
Stories from veterans, families and participants that carry the same values as the rose — retold from the record, never invented.
At the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, nineteen steel soldiers walk through juniper and granite, mirrored in the Pool of Remembrance. Veterans and their families still leave roses at its wall, where the inscription reads: Freedom is not free.
Source: Korean War Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
Help this archive grow
Did someone in your family serve with United States in Korea — or were they healed, taught or befriended by those who did? Every entry is reviewed and verified with you before publication.
Share a story1950 – 1953
The United States provided the largest contribution of any UN Sending State, serving on land, at sea and in the air for the full course of the war, and leading the United Nations Command. From the desperate defense of the Pusan Perimeter to the landing at Incheon, American service members stood alongside Korean and allied forces at nearly every turning point of the conflict.
Historical passages are written with care and without invented figures; details still under review are marked for verification before print.
A nation of many peoples, the United States carried its ideal of liberty across the Pacific. The rose — grown in every American state — mirrors that plurality: countless varieties, one bloom of shared purpose.
Why the Rose
The national floral emblem of the United States — a flower of remembrance and devotion, laid at memorials from Washington to Seoul.