The blue and gold star banner tradition began in WW I when white Service Flags bordered in red were displayed from homes, business, schools and churches to indicate, by the use of a blue star, each active service member in the U.S. Military. A gold star indicated those who had given their lives for their country.

UC Davis is honoring its military casualties in two memorable ways.

Gold Star Aggies Wall

The Gold Star Aggies Wall is in the newly remodeled Memorial Union, dedicated in 1955 as a memorial to Aggies lost in war. Their names have always been on display in the Memorial Union — first on nameplates on the mantle of the fireplace in Griffin Lounge, then engraved on stainless-steel panels on a wall to the rear of the fireplace. Now those 135 names are in a much more prominent location: the East Wing hallway.

Golden Memory Book

The Golden Memory Book is there, too, in a display case, alongside a pair of touch-screen monitors where people can call up pages from UC Davis' Golden Memory Book to read about our fallen soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines, and see their pictures.