Dear Michael,

It is hard to believe that a decade has passed since the first 10,000-flower tribute at Arlington National Cemetery (ANC). Since then, the Memorial Day Flowers Foundation has held events every year, even during the most difficult times of the pandemic.  These tributes are only possible thanks to the ongoing support from the network of sponsors, donors, and volunteers.

We would like to share our accomplishments from 2021 with our community.

All the California flowers were brought from Lansdale, PA to Arlington by Younger & Son, and Armellini Express Lines trucked the Latin American roses from Miami to ANC.

Nationwide – Tribute Box Program: Delivered by Thursday, May 27, 2021

Across the country, Peraton employees who took part in the Matching Funds Tribute Box Program received a box with 125 roses.  Participating associates and their families visited their local cemeteries and placed flower tributes at military graves.

Alexandria National Cemetery Saturday, May 29, 2021

Associates from Peraton placed a flower and said a few words of thanks to every hero interred at Alexandria National Cemetery, one of the precursors to Arlington. Through four hours of chilly rain, fifteen volunteers focused on placing a flower at each of the 5,500 headstones at the cemetery.

Arlington National Cemetery – May 30 through 31, 2021

ANC administration worked closely with MDFF to get back to a sense of normalcy in flower placement and Welcome Center flower handouts.  2021 was the second year of the Gold Star Program, handing small tote bags of 25 complementary flowers to Gold Star Families as they entered on Memorial Avenue. This provided sponsors the unique opportunity to directly interact with families visiting their interred loved ones.
Over the course of Memorial Day Weekend, volunteers and families placed more than 200,000 flowers at headstones throughout the cemetery.  Flowers were distributed at:

• Memorial Avenue
• ANC Welcome Center to all visitors entering the cemetery
• Sponsored sections throughout the cemetery
• Section 60 on Memorial Day

The eighteen Core Volunteers, most of whom take time every year to help, ensured that the events ran smoothly.  Registered volunteers and visitors were instrumental in placing flowers at all the different sections.

Victory for Veterans: May 30 – 31

In the sixth year of its partnership with MDFF, Victory for Veterans used the Memorial Day events to raise funds for their Veteran Suicide Prevention Centers in their communities.  In 2021, their organizers and volunteers placed over 30,000 flowers at six different cemeteries throughout the country.  Find out more about Victory for Veterans on their website.

Fort Custer Michigan – May 30

For the fifth consecutive year, Plumeria Floral Designs held a flower tribute event at Fort Custer National Cemetery, placing over 3,500 flowers at the graves of our heroes.

Fort Custer Michigan – May 30

For the fifth consecutive year, Plumeria Floral Designs held a flower tribute event at Fort Custer National Cemetery, placing over 3,500 flowers at the graves of our heroes.

#TUS100 at ANC

This year, the Foundation had the unique opportunity to take part in commemorating the 100^th Anniversary of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery.  Over sixty thousand flowers were placed around the Tomb Monument, placed by thousands of visitors on the two days leading up to Veteran’s Day.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Alexandria

The Foundation, along with Peraton volunteers, participated in an intimate ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier of the American Revolution.  The monument can be found in the small cemetery behind the historic Old Presbyterian Meeting House in Alexandria, VA.  After a few words of prayer from a church official, flowers were given to all attendees to place around this historic monument.

Bouquets for Veterans

For the first time, the Foundation made bouquets available to residents and staff at two veteran retirement communities in the Washington DC area, Vinson Hall Retirement Community and the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Washington DC.  Over one thousand bouquets were brought to these retirement communities, paid for with donations from our readers and supporters.

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