I've always wondered why there's the big push for memorial attendance myself. It's just about the most boring meeting of the year. If before or after the meeting you're talking with someone and laughing, you must not appreciate the solemnness of the occasion. Does any newcomer ever attend and say, "oh yeah, this is where I want to be"?
The memorial was the last meeting I attended some 5 or 6 years ago, and afterwards vowing never to return. The ritual of it all kind of freaked me out since at that time I hadn't been to a meeting in years.