Wreaths Across America's Trucking Tributes Presents Arpin Van Lines
Wreaths Across America is experiencing tremendous growth across the country with over 2,000 participating locations in 2019. “As our locations grow, we need more trucks”
Wreaths Across America's Trucking Tributes Presents Arpin Van Lines
The Wreaths Across America mission to remember, honor, and teach would not be possible without the transportation industry. Veterans’ wreaths move by planes, trains, and livestock trailers but it’s the trucks and their professional drivers who haul the lion’s share of America’s respect. For the past few years, Wreaths Across America has highlighted their steadfast commitment in the “Trucking Tributes” feature online, and on Wreaths Across America Radio.
Wreaths Across America is experiencing tremendous growth across the country with over 2,000 participating locations in 2019. “As our locations grow, we need more trucks,” explains Don Queeney, Director of Transportation for Wreaths Across America. It may seem like a simple equation to figure out, but there’s a human factor involved that most people don’t consider when it comes to trucking logistics. “One of our particular challenges when assigning loads is considering the relationships and strong bonds that develop over the years between the drivers and the volunteers on the receiving end. If drivers have been participating a long time with us, they’ve developed meaningful friendships. Sometimes we can’t avoid it and have to break-up loads.”
One such driver who has been hauling veterans’ wreaths for Wreaths Across America for over seven years is Steven Meyer, who drives for Arpin Van Lines. When asked why he’s motivated to support the mission, his response is simple. “Because I’m an American. My father served in the Air Force for 32 years, and my mother served in the Air Force. I come from a military family, and I understand the sacrifices made by military families.” Steven and Arpin Van Lines are in the moving and storage industry, and a good portion of their customers have been military families. Last year, Arpin’s President and CEO, David Arpin, received the Wreaths Across America James Prout-Spirit of Giving Award during the 34th annual Arpin Agent Convention in Rhode Island. This year, Steven is stepping up once again to make several trips hauling the balsam fir wreaths to various storage facilities and cross docks. Steven says it’s a powerful feeling being involved with Wreaths Across America. “I’ve seen it all. I’ve had old ladies come up to me crying to thank me for delivering the wreaths,” he recalls with emotion. “At one VFW that I deliver to, these old men come out and help me carry the wreath boxes from the trucks balancing them on their walkers.”
As the mission expands more, and more trucks and drivers are needed. “When the economy is robust, as it is now, that taxes the trucking industry as their clients expect them to move more around the country for them so they may not be as available, Don explains. “It’s still amazing to see what these companies, small and large, do for us every year.” Citizen-sponsored veterans’ wreaths are headed for every state in the nation and overseas. If you’d like to help haul America’s respect, please contact Don Queeney. Some fuel assistance, on a limited basis, might support more independent owner/operators to participate in the mission thanks to a recent donation from NAIT.
You can hear more from Steven, Don, and others in Trucking Tributes on Tuesdays at 11:00 AM and again at 4:00 PM EST exclusively on Wreaths Radio.
Contact
Message Sent
Thank you so much for contacting us! Our team will respond within 24 hours.
Invite
Share
Invite email sent.
Also, one of the most powerful ways that you can help is to share that you've volunteered to help on Wreaths Across America Day on social media. Please click on the social media links of your choice below.
Registration Complete
Your registration information was successfully submitted. To help us recruit more volunteers, please click one of the buttons below to share information on volunteering on social media.
Loading...
Wreath Sponsorship
Northrop Grumman Supported by VERITAS and Corporate Citizenship (NG) |150543|
Did you know that Wreaths Across America now offers recurring sponsorships? You can select the occurrence and cancel or pause anytime! Register now by completing this form! (https://tinyurl.com/n735zrbr)
What does it mean to sponsor a wreath? It means you are supporting a yearlong mission to Remember the fallen, Honor those who serve, and Teach the next generation the value of freedom. Your sponsorship will support the new and existing programs developed to share the mission. And, it will place a wreath to honor an American hero at one of more than 3,700 participating locations this year on National Wreaths Across America Day – a day set aside to lay gathers as Americans with the same goal.
We can’t do that without your support, though. Your sponsorship will ensure a hand-crafted wreath of all-American balsam and hand-tied with a red velvet bow here in Columbia Falls, Maine. It will then be sent to one of our participating locations, where a volunteer will place it on the marker of a hero. That volunteer will then “say their name” to ensure that the legacy of duty, service, and sacrifice is never forgotten.
So, what does it mean to sponsor a wreath? It means you have the opportunity to join a grateful nation in saying “thank you” to those who stepped up to serve.
*Please Note: Specific locations designated as "ceremonial-only" accept a limited number of sponsorships. Any additional sponsorships received beyond those used for the ceremony will be distributed to other locations.