By Sherrie Norris
The inaugural Wreaths Across America ceremony in Boone on Saturday, Dec. 16, was a great success, according to Donna McNeil, regent of the Daniel Boone Chapter DAR, who spearheaded the event.
“We were not able to get an exact number, but we had over 100 volunteers show up to help lay wreaths on the graves of our local veterans who are buried at Mount Lawn Park & Gardens,” McNeil said. “We were very pleased with the turn-out, especially since this is our first time.”
Those volunteers were individuals, families and members of various civic, community, church and school groups. including the DAR, SAR (Sons of the American Revolution), Rebecca Bryan Boone Society, Children of the American Revolution, High Country Chapter/Military Officers Association of America, Watauga County American Legion, Blue Star Mothers, Mount Vernon Baptist Church, several Girl Scout Troops (10289/10290/12810) and Watauga High JROTC.
“We were very blessed to have had such good community participation and we want to thank everyone who attended,” McNeil said. “Of course, we couldn’t have done it without the fine folks at Mount Lawn who provided the names of the 651 veterans buried there and the location of their graves.”
Made possible through donations and purchases, 400 wreaths were delivered and randomly placed on veteran graves, with American flags adorning the remainder of same.
While much planning and preparations were required behind-the-scenes, Thursday afternoon began to put it all into focus as a semi, provided by Harris Teeter, delivered the wreaths; Pastor Bud Russell from Mount Vernon Baptist Church and a few of his members were there to help unload the truck, with some of those returning to help on Saturday.
Wreaths Across America organization contracts with related businesses each year for the wreaths. “We also had some wreaths and greenery donated from Frosty’s in Ashe County,” McNeil stated.
Heidi Ratti, chief human resources officer at RXO in Charlotte who handles wreath transportation/logistics, was present and participated with her family for Saturday’s Boone ceremony. She shared with High Country Press. “It is such a great honor to be part of Wreaths Across America and to give back and recognize those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our nation. RXO has proudly provided transportation for the wreaths for the last four years, and this year we were able to deliver to Arlington National Cemetery as volunteers laid wreaths on veterans’ gravesites. Across the country, RXO employees volunteered at wreath-laying ceremonies, and I had the great opportunity to attend the event at Mount Lawn. The ceremony was beautiful and moving as we honored those we have lost. I think it is important to teach the next generation about the sacrifices these men and women made for our freedom, and it was touching to have the ability to share this important event with my children.
Following recommended protocol for the ceremony, McNeil included the optional (larger) wreath presentation, representing each of America’s military branches. “I thought it was very meaningful and we asked veterans in attendance to help. Those wreaths will stay on display in front of the mausoleum for a while.
Wreaths Across America Organization Comes Full Circle
On behalf of Wreaths Across America, McNeil shared during the opening ceremony “a really great story,” she described, about the organization and its origin:
“Morrill Worcester, owner of Worcester Wreath Company of Harrington, Maine, was a 12-year old paper boy when he won a trip to Washington D.C. It was his first to our nation’s capital and one that would change the trajectory of his life and the lives of millions of others across the country. Seeing the hundreds of thousands of graves and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery made an especially indelible impression on him. It was to be an experience that would follow him throughout his life and successful career, reminding him that his good fortune was due, in large part, to the values of his nation and the veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.”
McNeil continued, “In 1992, Worcester Wreath found themselves with a surplus of wreaths nearing the end of the holiday season. Remembering his boyhood experience at Arlington, Worcester realized he had an opportunity to honor our country’s veterans. With the aid of Maine Senator Olympia Snowe (ret), arrangements were made for the surplus wreaths to be placed at Arlington in one of the older cemetery sections that had been receiving fewer visitors each passing year.
“As plans were underway to transport the wreaths to Washington, a number of other individuals and organizations stepped up to help. James Prout, owner of local trucking company Blue Bird Ranch, Inc., generously provided transportation all the way to Virginia. Volunteers from the local American Legion and VFW Posts gathered with members of the community to decorate each wreath with traditional red, hand-tied bows. Members of the Maine State Society of Washington D.C., helped to organize the wreath-laying, which included a special ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.”
For over a decade, this annual tribute went on quietly and privately, McNeil shared. “Everything changed in 2005, when a photo of the stones at Arlington, adorned with wreaths and covered in snow, circulated around the internet. Suddenly, the homespun tribute from a small town in down east Maine was receiving national attention. Thousands of requests poured in from all over the country from people wanting to help purchase and lay wreaths at Arlington. Thousands more wanted to emulate the Arlington project at their local National and State cemeteries. Still others simply desired to share their stories and thank Morrill Worcester for honoring our nation’s heroes. Many were surviving family members of some of those heroes.
“Unable to donate thousands of wreaths to each state, Worcester began sending seven wreaths to every state: One for each branch of the military and an additional wreath to pray tribute to POW/MIAs. In 2006, with the help of the Civil Air Patrol and other civic organizations, simultaneous wreath-laying ceremonies were held at over 150 locations around the country. The Patriot Guard Riders volunteered as escorts for the wreaths going to Arlington in the beginnings of the annual ‘Veterans Honor Parade,’ a convoy that now travels the east coast every year in early December.
The annual trip to Arlington and the groups of volunteers eager to participate in Worcester’s simple wreath-laying event grew each year — until it became clear that the desire to remember and honor our country’s fallen heroes was bigger than he could have imagined possible at the outset. The movement had grown beyond Arlington and bigger than this one company in Harrington, Maine.
In 2007, the Worcester family, along with the support of veterans organizations and a variety of other groups and individuals who had helped with their annual veterans wreath ceremony in Arlington, formed Wreaths Across America, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, to continue and expand this effort, and support others around the country who wanted to do the same. The simple mission of the organization was established: Remember. Honor. Teach.”
McNeil added, that just one year later, over 300 locations held wreath-laying ceremonies in every state, Puerto Rico and 24 overseas cemeteries.
“Over 100,000 wreaths were placed on veterans’ graves. Over 60,000 volunteers participated. And that year, December 13, 2008, was unanimously voted by the United States Congress as Wreaths Across America Day.”
In 2014, a goal of placing a veteran’s wreath on every grave marker was met with the sponsorship and placement of 226,525 wreaths, McNeil continued.
“In 2018, a delegation of volunteers and supporters were invited by the American Battle Monuments Commission to hold a wreath ceremony to honor the nearly 10,000 heroes interred at Normandy American Cemetery in France. In 2022, Wreaths Across America — and its national network of volunteers — placed more than 2.7 million sponsored veterans’ wreaths on headstones of our nation’s service members at 3,702 participating locations.
“This was accomplished with the support of more than 5,000 sponsorship groups, corporation contributions, and in-kind donations from the transportation industry across the country,” McNeil added.
The wreath-laying that began more than 30 years ago is still held annually, on the second or third Saturday of December.
“WAA’s annual pilgrimage from Harrington, Maine to Arlington National Cemetery has become known as the world’s largest veterans’ parade,” she described. “Every year the convoy of trucks, local law enforcement, staff and supporters stop at schools, monuments, veterans’ homes and communities along the way to talk about the Wreaths Across America mission and remind people how important it is to remember, honor and teach.”
Bringing It Back Home
In conclusion, McNeil stated, “I love that we can remember our local community heroes, 651 of which are buried at Mount Lawn. I look forward to Wreaths Across America Day December 14, 2024, which will again be held at Mount Lawn Memorial Park & Gardens, and I hope that you, your family and/or your special group will start planning now to participate.”
For more information, email McNeil at Donnamcneil5 4@yahoo.com, call (828) 719-7701 or visit www.WreathsAcrossAmerica.org
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