ARLINGTON, Va. — President Trump on Monday expressed the nation’s boundless gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice paid by Americans in defense of the United States.

He dedicated his first Memorial Day address as commander in chief to a top Cabinet secretary and members of two other families who lost loved ones to war.

Participating in the solemn annual observance at Arlington National Cemetery, Trump recounted the stories of Green Beret Captain Andrew D. Byers of Colorado Springs and Christopher D. Horton of the Oklahoma National Guard as Byers’ tearful parents and Horton’s emotional widow looked on.

Trump also singled out for special mention Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired Marine lieutenant general whose son, Robert, also a Marine, was killed after he stepped on a land mine while on patrol in southern Afghanistan in November 2010.

Trump addressed Gold Star families, those that have lost loved service members: ‘‘They each had their own names, their own stories, their own beautiful dreams. But they were all angels sent to us by God and they all share one title in common and that is the title of hero, real heroes.’’

‘‘Though they were here only a brief time before God called them home, their legacy will endure forever,’’ Trump said.

ASSOCIATED PRESS