National Cemetery hosts Wreaths Across America event
Members of Civil Air Patrol look for graves missing a wreath during the Wreaths Across America event at National Cemetery of Alleghenies Saturday. Nearly 7,000 wreaths were placed, one for every grave at the cemetery.
Toni Bubno of Bethel Park carefully places a wreath in front of the grave of her husband, Daniel Bubno. Daniel Bubno served with the U.S. Marine Corps in the Vietnam War.
Mike Ramandanes of McDonald takes a moment with his sons, from left, Landon Ramandanes, 6, and Gavin Ramandanes,11, to honor a veteran before placing a wreath on the grave stone.
Veterans and attendees of the Wreaths Across America ceremony take a moment of silence to remember those who served. Local officials spoke during a short ceremony prior to the laying of the wreaths.
This was the first year enough money was donated to purchase a wreath for every grave at National Cemetery of the Alleghenies. Abouto 7,000 wreaths were placed by volunteers on every grave.
Donna Sedon of Scott Township sits in front of her husband’s grave at National Cemetery of the Alleghenies. Her husband, Joseph J. Sedon Jr., served with the U.S. Army in the Vietnam War. Sedon goes every year to the wreath ceremony.
CECIL – On an unseasonably warm afternoon that could have easily been set aside for holiday shopping or even a burst of mid-December yard work, Barbara Griffith instead made her way to National Cemetery of the Alleghenies from her Wexford home.
Along with her husband, Harry Griffith, and their son, John, they were part of a platoon of volunteers placing wreaths on the gravestones of veterans laid to rest at the cemetery as part of the national Wreaths Across America event, which occurred simultaneously across the country Saturday.
“We wanted to come and help all the families,” Griffith said. “I had no idea there would be so many volunteers.”
The three members of the Griffith family were among an estimated 2,000 volunteers who placed wreaths on the simple white stones at National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, of which there are now close to 7,000. A brief ceremony got things started at noon before all the stones were bedecked with green wreaths and red bows within an hour. Along with volunteers like the Griffiths, many survivors of the veterans buried at the cemetery attended.
“A lot of people have put in a lot of effort, both physically and financially,” said Ronald Hestdalen, director of National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, located in Cecil Township. “It’s very important to remember our nation’s veterans and their unselfish service.”
The volunteers who fanned out across the cemetery included several Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. Jodie Stocks, a Cub Scout den leader in the Butler County community of West Sunbury, said helping Wreaths Across America is a service project for her Cub Scout den, where they donate some money to placing wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery, and half to the closest national cemetery.
The genesis of Wreaths Across America dates back to 1992, when Morrill Worcester, the proprietor of a Maine wreath company, decided to place 5,000 surplus holiday wreaths on some of the stones at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. He kept doing it year after year, and once photos of the decorated stones went viral on the Internet about 10 years ago, other volunteers decided to emulate Worcester’s effort in their communities. By 2007, the drive was officially christened Wreaths Across America, and the U.S. Congress officially recognized it the following year, naming Dec. 13, 2008, “Wreaths Across America Day.”
State Sen. Camera Bartolotta told the volunteers and family members Saturday, “I don’t think it’s the wreath that brought you out. It’s your dedication.”