Dec. 10—For the 18th year in a row, the Danville chapter of Wreaths Across America (WAA) will be honoring fallen soldiers buried in the Danville National Cemetery.
The event begins at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, and if for National Wreaths Across America Day, joining more than 3 million other volunteers nationwide to honor veterans by placing wreaths on their headstones.
The non-profit organization, which formed in 2007, began as a way to continue the legacy started by Morrill Worcester of Worcester Wreath Company, out of Harrington, Maine.
When Worcester had a surplus of wreaths in 1992, he teamed up with Senator Olympia Snowe to have those wreaths placed on headstones at Arlington National Cemetery, having visited as a child and been impacted by the sight of all the headstones.
Currently, the Danville group has received enough funds to purchase 4,404 wreaths, but there are 11,816 fallen soldiers interred at Danville National Cemetery, according to Tammy Williams, the location coordinator for DNC.
Although it’s too late to purchase wreaths from the organization for this year’s ceremony, Williams says help is still needed for fundraising for 2025.
“Our goal is to cover the whole cemetery with wreaths,” Williams said.
Wreaths, which costs $17 each, come in a variety of colors and designs to honor those who served in each branch of the military, as well as wreaths to honor those declared Prisoners of War / Missing in Action, those who lost their lives to Agent Orange or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Scott Bennett memorial wreaths for disabled veterans.
“We have families, gold-star families, that attend the ceremony — families who lost their soldier,” Williams said. “My goal is to let them know that during this season when everyone is worried about getting presents and all of that, we still remember the sacrifice that loved one made.”
In previous years, Senator Paul Faraci and Congresswoman Robin Kelly have participated in the ceremony. This year, Rep. Brandun Schweizer — a former Marine himself — will offer a speech at the ceremony at 11 a.m., followed by the wreath laying.