Veterans laid to rest in Long Beach to be honored December 14

By superadmin | December 5, 2024 |

By Toni Miles

It’s not unusual to see decorative wreaths hanging from doors during the holiday season, and, thanks to local and national efforts, wreaths are now a common sight in cemeteries this time of year across the country, thanks to the Wreaths Across America program.

For the sixth year in a row, the public is invited to attend the annual Wreaths Across America event, scheduled for Saturday, December 14, at the Long Beach City Cemetery, located on Girard Avenue in Long Beach. The formal ceremony will begin promptly at 11 a.m. Members of Donnie Levens American Legion Post 1995 and Eddie Blake VFW Post 3937 will begin laying wreaths on the headstones and graves of late veterans buried at the cemetery once the ceremony concludes. Volunteers are encouraged to assist in the laying of the wreaths.

“The laying of a wreath on the grave of our fallen military brothers and sisters, in reverence for their service to our country, is one way for those of us remaining to honor and remember them,” says local veteran Tina O’Shields.

At last year’s ceremony, a fresh, hand-made, live balsam wreath was laid at every one of the known two hundred seventy-five veterans’ gravesites at the Long Beach City Cemetery.

Again this year, local business leaders, organizations, family and friends of veterans’ families, and members of the community can contribute to this annual event by purchasing and donating wreaths. Each hand-made, fresh, live wreath costs $17 and is made in the USA with Maine balsam. Organizers ask those sponsoring to please let them know who is being sponsored. Although the Long Beach City Cemetery will be the focus of the wreath laying, wreaths for veterans interred at other Long Beach and neighboring cemeteries can be sponsored and picked up the afternoon of December 14, after the ceremony on Girard Avenue.

Local organizers also ask the public to inform them of any veterans they may know who are interred at an area cemetery who may not have a gravesite indication that he or she is a veteran, so a wreath can be laid at their burial site.

The Wreaths Across America Program launched in December of 1992, when wreath maker Morrill Worcester found himself with a surplus of 5,000 wreaths during the holiday season. Worcester saw the surplus as an opportunity to pay tribute to the country’s veterans and arranged for the wreaths to be placed at Arlington National Cemetery. The now-annual tribute has continued ever since, touching the lives of millions of veterans’ families and volunteers and growing in scope through the years.

In 2007, the Worcester family, along with veterans and volunteers, formed the non-profit organization Wreaths Across America to continue and expand their efforts at Arlington National Cemetery and to support those around the country who wished to do the same. Wreaths Across America’s mission is simple: Remember the fallen, Honor those that serve, and Teach the next generation about the value of freedom. In 2023, Wreaths Across America and its national network of volunteers placed over three million veterans’ wreaths at more than 4,425 locations in all fifty U.S. states, at sea, and abroad. This year, there are over 4,700 participating locations.

Note:

There’s still time to donate or sponsor a wreath to be placed on a veteran’s grave at the ceremony in December. There are several ways to do so:

Scan the QR codeto make a donation online.
Visit WreathsAcrossAmerica.org/MS0054.
Mail a donation or sponsorship (made out to American Legion Post 1995) to American Legion Post 1995, PO Box 550, Long Beach MS 39560.
Mail or deliver a donation or sponsorship (made out to American Legion Post 1995) to VFW Post 3937, 213 Klondyke Road, Long Beach MS 39560.

Event organizers Wendy Griffioen can be reached at 228-424-6910, and Margaret Levens can be contacted at 228-341-3574.