Christmas honors

When I think about Christmas and the military, my mind goes back to Christmas in Vietnam. I remember the faces of those who were there with me, and I remember mailbags being delivered to us when we were out in the bush. Small packages from family members of the troops sitting in our perimeter. In the middle of the night, “Silent Night” took on a new meaning as quiet and darkness fully enveloped us. Sitting on guard on the perimeter, you fought the memories of Christmas’ past, which brought with them loneliness and yearnings for home and family.

Today, I think about the families who have lost a soldier, sailor, Marine or airman in our current as well as past wars, and those whose pain and loss is renewed every Dec. 25. The memories of those service members and veterans who have died are renewed and honored by a small company in Maine and thousands of volunteers across the country.

Morrill Worcester, owner of Worcester Wreath Co. of Harrington, Maine, in 1992 found near the end of the Christmas season his company had a surplus of wreaths. He contacted Sen. Olympia Snow’s office, and with their help, he arranged to have the wreaths placed at Arlington National Cemetery in one of the older sections that got fewer visitors. Word spread, and in 2005, a photo of hundreds of snow-covered wreaths at Arlington was picked up by the media.

Today, more wreaths have been donated, trucking companies have transported the wreaths, and volunteers, including many from the American Legion and the VFW, have placed the wreaths on veterans’ graves across the country. In 2004, 100,000 wreaths were placed at 300 locations across America and in Puerto Rico. The program continued to grow, and in 2014, 700,000 wreaths were laid at over 7,000 locations. This included all the graves at Arlington which were covered with 226,525 wreaths.

This honor program was started by Morrill Worcester and has continued with volunteers. Relatives and friends of the dead should note the citizens of this country have honored our dead without the government taking over. This is a citizen movement to show gratitude to those who served.

Jack Dragoni who resides in Chaffee, served in the U.S. Army in Berlin and Vietnam.