A light mist fell Saturday, but the mood was positive. About 40 volunteers gathered in St. Thomas Cemetery in Cornwall to lay wreaths at the graves of those who served our country in the armed forces.
Wreaths across America started in 1992 when the owners of the Worcester Wreath Company, in Harrington, Maine, wanted to find a place for the 5,000 wreaths they had left over. The owner contacted Arlington National Cemetery, in Washington, D.C., and donated the wreaths.
This act of generosity caught on nationally and now the second Saturday in December is dedicated to Wreaths across America.
Location coordinators, like Lisa Favino, visit wreathsacrossamerica.org to register a cemetery. Favino, who helped a friend receive a delivery of wreaths last year, opted to volunteer and registered St. Thomas Cemetery because her father is buried there. He had served in the Army.
After observing her friend lay wreaths at a cemetery in Hamptonburgh, Favino said it was the least she could do for our veterans who did so much for our country.
Once she registered, Favino and her husband visited the cemetery to get an approximate number of veterans buried there. At last count, they came up with 327 names.
The next step was to raise funds to sponsor the purchase of each $15 wreath. Favino sent numerous requests through her own Facebook page, as well as the Living in Cornwall Page. She contacted businesses and raised $245 just by standing in front of a supermarket. For every two wreaths purchased, Wreaths across America donated one.
On Dec. 13, a tractor trailer delivered 38 boxes containing nine wreaths each.
The next day, promptly at noon, Senator James Skoufis led the volunteers in a moment of silence followed by the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance.
“Today we show a united front of gratitude and respect across the United States of America as we remember the fallen, honor those who serve and their families, and teach the next generation the value of freedom,” said Skoufis.
Members of the Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts were asked to lay a wreath in memory of those who served the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marines. A wreath was also laid in honor of the 93,129 men and women, from all branches of service, whose last known status was either “Prisoner of War” or “Missing in Action.”
Each volunteer was encouraged to speak the veteran’s name and take a moment to thank them for their service before laying a wreath at their headstone. Some volunteers complied with Skoufis’s request while others offered a short prayer.
“Remember, we are not here to ‘decorate graves,’” Skoufis said. “We are here to remember not their deaths, but their lives. Each wreath is a gift of appreciation from a grateful America.”
