Several hundred volunteers from nearby communities gathered Saturday morning, December 16, to place evergreen wreaths at the headstones of military veterans interred at Little Rock National Cemetery. They joined more than two million volunteers and supporters at more than 4,200 locations in the United States, abroad, and at sea to “remember, honor, and teach” the value of freedom and pay tribute to the service and sacrifice of those who served in the military.

A brief ceremony before the actual wreath distribution recognized sponsors, truck drivers, organizers, and volunteers, with a military honor guard, tribute wreaths for each branch of military service, and a POW/MIA wreath. Scout representatives participated in the ceremony, and several individuals were presented with commemorative metal plaques.

The tradition began in 1992 when Worcester Wreath Company of Columbia Falls, Maine, had a surplus stock of wreaths near the end of the holiday season. The company, with the help of Olympia Snowe, a United States senator from Maine at the time, arranged to transport the wreaths to Arlington National Cemetery. A wreath-laying ceremony was held that year at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and approximately 5,000 wreaths were placed in the oldest section of the national cemetery.

It generated interest from citizens and groups in other states, and the Worcester family later began sending seven wreaths to national cemeteries across the country — one for each branch of service, with an additional one in remembrance of POWs and MIAs. Subsequently, with the support of veterans’ organizations, the family formed a non-profit organization to coordinate the growing requests and facilitate the efforts of numerous volunteers.

The single day in December when the wreaths are placed at the cemeteries culminates a year-round effort that involves more than 5,000 sponsorship groups, corporate contributions, and in-kind donations from the transportation industry. Volunteer drivers transport wreaths throughout the nation. This year, three loaded tractor-trailers delivered more than 17,000 wreaths to the National Cemetery in Little Rock.

However, even that wasn’t enough to ensure that a wreath was available for the more than 21,000 headstones. Some of them date to the Civil War and the Spanish-American Conflict. Volunteers are asked to speak the name of each veteran as the wreath is placed; it becomes a moving tribute to those who served. There is a growing need for additional sponsorships and volunteers to meet next year’s goal, and the efforts begin right now. Visit Wreaths Across America for information about how to get involved.  

In December 2008, wreath-laying ceremonies were held in every state and Puerto Rico, and at 24 American cemeteries on foreign soil. A total of about 60,000 volunteers laid more than 100,000 wreaths, and the U.S. Congress unanimously voted December 13 of that year as “Wreaths Across America Day.”

Now, ceremonies are still held at Arlington, at the statehouses in nearly all states, and at Pearl Harbor, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. In addition, the HART Ceremony (*Honoring Allies and Remembering Together), is conducted each year at international border-crossing sites between Calais, Maine, and St. Stephen, New Brunswick; Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario; and Sweetwater, Montana, and the Alaskan//Canadian border.