The 2009 Wreaths Across America™ events were a stunning display of gratitude and appreciation for our veterans in communities all across the Country, on foreign soil, and even at sea.
Photos and videos are still rolling in to blogs and sharing sites all around the internet. The numbers - over 160,000 wreaths placed and 427 participating locations - don't do justice to many volunteers who made it all happen. This photo is from Houston National Cemetery.
Trucking Industry Supports Wreaths Across America™ Coming & Going
Last December nineteen different member businesses of the American Trucking Associations volunteered their time and services to help deliver the over 160,000 hand-made wreaths to locations all across the Nation.
Other association members like Houston-based Waste Management also participated in recent clean-ups at participating cemeteries - a gesture that while it receives much less fanfare, is equally important in the mission to Remember, Honor, and Teach about the sacrifices made by or veterans.
Wreaths Across America™ is proud to announce the formation of an Education Steering Committee for 2010 to help further the mission of teaching our next generation the high cost of the freedoms that we enjoy each and every day.
After being inspired by schools hosting and participating WAA events in 2009, Executive Director Karen Worcester is forming the Steering Committee to explore and combine the best efforts around the Country - and create a curriculum unit for schools and educators who want to share the Wreaths Across America experience with their students.
Do you see in this picture from Edgewood Elementary in PA, how the flag is made up of hundreds of little hands?
Anyone wishing to contribute ideas or volunteer towards the WAA mission to TEACH - is encouraged to contact WAA HQ.
Living History Is One Way To Bring The Experience Alive
One highlight of the 2009 Escort of Wreaths from Maine to Virginia was addition of several Sons of the America Revolution (SAR) members who brought history alive with their participation in period uniforms.
Charles McGillicuddy of Maine and James Manship (as General George Washington) each played their part. Seeing Mr. Manship in person was like watching General Washington step out of the history books to honor our first veterans who laid down their lives for this budding Nation. This YouTube video shares several scenes the escort and ceremonies commemorating the 2009 wreath-laying events...
Ceremonies At Sea This photo came to us courtesy of Capt. Pat & Nancy McCarn from Operation Tribute At Sea as part of the Decemeber wreath-laying events. Over 16 boats participated including several Police, Fire, and Coast Guard representatives.
Wreaths Across Canada
Our brethren to the North have joined us in honoring our veterans. This photo is from the first wreath-laying ceremony in Newfoundland. Thank you to Craig McPhee and Wade Morris for sharing the start of Wreaths Across Canada.
July 06, 2009Greetings From Wreaths Across America™
Hope Everyone Enjoyed a Happy & Safe 4th!
It's July 6th not many people are thinking about the holidays or wreaths for our veterans, but we have some great news to share with you about Wreaths Across America™!
If you have been a longtime subscriber of our newsletter, you know that it has been several months - an unusual gap - since our last edition. Well we have been hard a work and have several new projects to unveil...
The New Website Is Available!
Our first big announcement and one of our biggest projects this spring was a whole redesign of the Wreaths Across America™ website.
Since allowing our supporters to post comments since 2007 - the old site was over 400 pages and becoming increasingly hard to manage. So a new site design was commissioned.
The new site looks different, but just as important we have added a number of new functions to support the mission of our Location Leaders and Fundraising Groups.
Each participating location has become almost like a mini-website within the larger website. You won't see the back office area, but know that each day we are adding the resources that help our leaders make the most memorable events each December.
Special thanks to our friends at Links Online Solutions as they worked thru our many questions and requests.
If you would like to see a comparison between the old and new sites, the old one will be up just a little bit longer while we complete the transition:
We have some other great updates and news to share - and I promise we won't make you wait as long this time! Now that the new site is up and rolling, we will be sharing more frequently.
In the meantime, I hope you will check out the new site and video. We will be collecting information to share in future newsletters so if you have a particularly memorable story to share about your Wreaths Across America™ experience - please email us.
Blog
Living History Is One Way To Bring The Experience Alive
Our first big announcement and one of our biggest projects this spring was a whole redesign of the Wreaths Across America™ website. 