DAR Sponsors Wreath Ceremony for Veterans

Earlier this month, convoys of trucks left the small town of Harrington, Maine. They were on a mission that stemmed from the impact a childhood visit to Washington, D.C. had on a young paperboy who travelled to our nation’s capital after winning a contest.

That trip and his visit to the National Cemetery at Arlington became an experience that Morrill Worcester could never forget. In 1992, after he had matured and become an adult, he was presented with an opportunity. Rather than discard a surplus of wreaths produced at his company, Worcester Wreaths, he made arrangements to donate them to the National Cemetery at Arlington.

It didn’t take long before the word of the Worcester family’s generosity spread. This led the family and several other groups to develop a plan, including the formation of a 501(c)(3) organization. His wife Karen became the Executive Director of the organization. It was there that the foundation for Wreaths Across America began. The organization has continued to grow by leaps and bounds.

This Christmas season, approximately 270,000 wreaths will be placed on the graves of fallen soldiers, marines, airmen and sailors at Arlington, as well as hundreds of thousands more throughout cemeteries across the nation and internationally.

Since then, men, women and children gather in December, as they did on December 18th, to pay their respects to those who have made the sacrifice of service to our nation, from the American Revolution to the latest conflicts in the Middle East and the War on Terror. We, the living, gather on a special Saturday in December to honor all of those who have honored us by their service to our nation.

At Arlington Cemetery, in small-town communities like Marco Island, and at more than 1,600 additional locations in all 50 states, at sea and abroad, citizens and families gather to pay their respects.

Here on Marco Island, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) stepped up and took on the task of ensuring that those who have been laid to rest here were not forgotten. DAR has taken on the solemn duty of arranging the ceremony at the Marco Island Cemetery on Bald Eagle Drive.

The ceremony began shortly after noon with a spectacular flyover from the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), followed by a welcoming statement from DAR Regent Ellen Camm from the Marco DAR chapter. The event was opened with a prayer by Reverend Thomas McCulley, and a short presentation by both Regent Camm and Lee Rubenstein, Commander of the local American Legion Post 404.

As part of the ceremony, members of American Legion Post 404 laid wreaths on the Armed Forces Memorial at the Marco Cemetery to honor of each service branch. Each branch of service was represented by individuals of the post and those wreaths were donated to the DAR by the Wreaths Across America Foundation.

With that portion of the ceremony completed, attendees listened and joined in with Emily Savage, as she sang her late husband Herb Savage’s favorite song, “God Bless America.”

Attendees laid wreaths on family members’ graves, while DAR members distributed them on the other appropriate resting places throughout the cemetery, before closing the ceremonies.

For more information regarding the organization and the 2022 Wreath Program, visit the DAR website at: www.fssdar.com.