Dear Michael Barbour,

Like most of you, I am looking forward to this weekend and the community display of patriotism. Families will gather for cookouts and fireworks, and parades will bring people together all over the country.

As I started to pull my thoughts together for this month’s message, I struggled to not sound cliché.

Memorial Day is a day designated to honor and remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country. Freedom does come at great cost. And we do indeed live in the land of the free, because of the brave. But this week, I had the honor to spend some time with a Gold Star Mother, and although her son died more than 15 years ago, he is ever-present when we are together.

She shared some of the planned upcoming events to remember and honor her son, and as she was talking what I already knew was reconfirmed. For her, every day is Memorial Day, and for me witnessing her life’s mission to keep his memory alive fueled my commitment to the WAA mission, my admiration for this mom, and my love for my country.

I was asked in an interview this week what I would ask people to do on Memorial Day. In retrospect, I would say it is important to honor and remember those who died, but also it is so important to take time to learn about their lives. Put a face with the name in your mind and encourage others to do the same…make it personal.

Memorial Day is a day when people come together to remember those who died in service to our country, but also to remind us of the liberty and blessings we enjoy at their expense.

If you take time to meet and know Gold Star families and their loved ones stories, that feeling of pride and patriotism will become a part of your daily walk and stay in your heart long after the parade.

Remember – Honor – Teach

With gratitude,

Karen Worcester

Executive Director

Honor and Remember a Loved One Who Served

Now it is perhaps more important than ever that we take the time to observe Memorial Day in the spirit it was intended.

Let’s bring our Wreaths Across America community together this year to remember our fallen veterans and honor them as they deserve.

Click on the button below to get started.

Register Now: Stem To Stone Remembrance Run

Our annual Stem to Stone Race Remembrance Run will take place on August 6th. Join us in Columbia Falls, Maine, where the mission will be on display through the 5K Run/Walk/Ruck and 10K Run, or from your own course at home. Each individual race registration sponsors a fresh balsam veteran’s wreath that will be placed on the headstone of an American hero on National Wreaths Across America Day. During check out, you can designate a sponsorship group or participating location you want your sponsored wreath allocated for placement.

TEACH the Next Generation the Value of Freedom

It can be tough to keep children engaged in the learning process during the summer, but it is important that they continue to be engaged in learning activities during the summer months.

Click on the buttons below to read a blog by WAA’s Education Liaison about ways to keep youth engaged and access free resources via our website.

The Mobile Education Exhibit Will Visit Three States in June

The MEE will visit Michigan, Wisconsin, and Florida this June. Don’t miss interactive exhibits, short films, and shared stories.

Public tours for the MEE are free and open to the public, members of the media, dignitaries, veterans, and other interested groups who would like to come, ask questions, share stories and experience this one-of-a-kind exhibit.

Featured Merchandise

Did you know that Wreaths Across America offers a scented candle? If you’ve ever taken a tip land tour, you know the encompassing smell that guides you through the beautiful evergreens.

Bring the scent of the tip land into your home!

Make sure to follow Wreaths Across America official channels on social media for the most up-to-the-minute news on the mission throughout the year:

Memorial Day is a holiday set aside to remember those who died in service to our Country. Breaking that down further, that service to the country and the sacrifice of their lives is what allows us as Americans to live in freedom.

While many Americans will take advantage of the warming weather to celebrate an unofficial start to summer, at Wreaths Across America, we will share in the unity that Military Appreciation month grants to continue to recognize our nation’s military and veterans. We will honor the sacrifices of so many heroes, say their names, share their stories and understand that though Memorial Day is about remembering those who died, the lessons we learn from them and pay forward are for our children.

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them.”

Remember – Honor – Teach

With gratitude,

Karen Worcester

Executive Director

Let Us Never Forget Our Solemn Pledge

It’s often said that for those who have served “every day is Memorial Day,” a traditionally silent observance in the Veteran’s mind that can best be described as an impossible trinity made up of an overwhelming sense of guilt, grief, and grit.

Usually, a moment of silence on this day is a welcomed and solemn way to honor the voices from our past, but for myself, after losing three former soldiers to suicide in the past few months, silence is no longer an option and the freedom to use our voice is the greatest gift that our veterans have to offer this Memorial Day.

Read Wreaths Across America’s full Memorial Day message written by Joseph Reagan, Director of Military and Veterans Outreach, by clicking on the button below.

Ways you Can Honor and Remember a Loved One Who Served 

Give the Gift of Remembrance.

With every $15 veteran’s wreath sponsorship, you have the opportunity to dedicate it “In Memory Of” a loved one who served. In addition to placing the wreaths each December on National Wreaths Across America Day, Wreaths Across America hosts a virtual “Remember Wall” for each participating location. You can post photos, memories and personal messages on these pages as a year-round display of remembrance for your loved ones.

Dedicate a Living Memorial Through the Remembrance Tree Program.

Wreaths Across America established the Veteran’s Remembrance Tree Program as another way to remember and honor our veterans. In Columbia Falls, Maine, where the balsam tips are harvested each year to be made into the wreaths that are placed on veteran’s graves, families can participate in the Remembrance Tree Program by finding a tree that will become a living memorial to their loved one and placing a customized dog tag on the trunk of the evergreen tree. These trees are kept in production and their balsam tips are harvested every three years and made into veterans’ wreaths that are placed each December. Participation in this program is FREE and open to all families who have had a loved one in the military.

TEACH the Next Generation the Value of Freedom

ICYMI: Earlier this month we announced the launch of our expanded TEACH program and collaboration with like-minded organizations that focuses on character development and service programs for youth of all ages, with lesson plans for all grade levels and learning abilities – including Memorial Day projects! To learn more and download the curriculum, please click the button.

Wreaths Across America Radio

Coming up on April 30, it’s a Gold-Star Saturday on Wreaths Across America Radio! Tune in to hear Jeff Pierce and Director of Military and Veteran Outreach Joe Reagan broadcast from the New York State Gold Star Mothers Convention. Our coverage begins at 8 am on Saturday, as we take the show on the road to the New York State Gold Star Mother Convention exclusively on Wreaths Across America Radio.

Featured Merchandise

Add the Wreaths Across America Tervis Tumbler to your collection!

Make sure to follow Wreaths Across America official channels on social media for the most up-to-the-minute news on the mission throughout the year:

Dear Michael Barbour,

The days are getting longer and, thankfully, a little warmer here at WAA Headquarters in Maine, and there is definite excitement in the air for 2022!

As we have poured over after-action reports, volunteer feedback and compared notes, the underlying theme across all departments was just how essential our volunteers are to Wreaths Across America’s continued success.

It is not lost on me or the WAA staff that the passion for the mission is demonstrated through so many dedicated individuals who not only understand, but live the mission and are our ambassadors on the local level. Every ceremony represents so much work and attention to detail but there is a component beyond those that continue to bring new people into the WAA family and that is, sincerity.

In communities all over the country veterans are honored by local families, but a common thread of understanding, and sacrifice for greater good pulls us all together and makes us stronger as one.

WAA looks forward to continuing to use our platforms: social media, newsletter and blog, and Wreaths Across America Radio to share stories, and to teach and fill the minds of our children through illustrations of service and sacrifice of real-life heroes.

We continue to depend on your understanding and help to carry out the year-long mission to fuel the next generation.

On behalf of the entire WAA Family, we thank you for your continued passion!

“Education is not the filling of a pot, but the lighting of a fire.” – W.B.Yeats

Remember – Honor – Teach

With gratitude,

Karen Worcester

Executive Director

#FindAWay2022

A Lasting Legacy, Determination, Dedication and Distinction

As we learn and look to celebrate the people and stories of Black History Month, Joe Reagan shares details about the women of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion. The “Six-Triple Eight” as they became known was the first and only all black Female Women Army Corp (WAC) unit to be deployed overseas during WWII and their mission was critical to the morale and success in the war.

The Tuskegee Legacy

WWII had begun the first week James Sheppard was enrolled in high school. “A lot of young men at the time wanted to do their part for their country. It was a patriotic thing, and millions were signing up to get in. Dad heard they had established a program from African-American pilots, and he thought that was the thing to do.”

Tune in to Wreaths Across America Radio to learn more about the legacy of Master Sgt. James A. Sheppard, a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen of World War II, as told by his son Bob Sheppard to Susan Patten.

The special Black History Month feature will air on the following days and times:

• Wednesday, Feb. 23 at 4pm ET/1 pm PT
• Friday, Feb. 25 at 11 am ET/8am PT

You’re Invited to this VIRTUAL Event:

Commemoration of the 60th Anniversary of the Disappearance of Flying Tiger Line Flight 739

Join us on VIRTUALLY on Wednesday, March 16, at 12pm EST/9am PST, as we commemorate the lives and legacy of the 93 United States Army soldiers and 11 civilian crew members who disappeared without a trace on this day, in 1962 while enroute to Vietnam on a top secret mission.

Save the Date

Our first Radio RoundTable of the year is planned to air on Thursday, March 24 at 7pm ET.

This discussion, hosted by Executive Director Karen Worcester and Director of Military & Veteran Outreach Joe Reagan will focus on Military Caregivers. Guests will include Melissa Comeau, Director of the American Red Cross Military and Veteran Caregiver Network and

Molly Brooks, Registered Nurse as well as the CEO and Founder of Hero’s Bridge.

The team is accepting questions for this discussion in advance. If you have a question you’d like to hear discussed, please contact the team today!

Featured Merchandise

2021 Rockers are Back in Stock!

Dear Michael Barbour,

Many years ago, John Wesley wrote “Light yourself on fire with passion and people will come from miles to watch you burn.” Those words come to my mind when I start thinking about the new theme for 2022 – FIND A WAY TO SERVE – and the expanded teaching initiative that will be part of it.

Of the veterans and gold star families that I have the honor to know, so many of them talk about the projects they are involved with to support and help others in their communities and the healing this type of service brings them. They have committed – in the wake of loss and sacrifice – to make a positive difference. In turn, they themselves find healing in that service. In fact it was from a Gold Star Mother that I first heard Mahatma Gandhi’s quote, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

Sharing this theme and its principle gives us an opportunity to touch hearts, homes and communities. I often say the TEACH pillar of our mission is the most important, because I feel it is where we can make the most impact on this country and all who call it home. I am excited about the new curriculum that features character building, and service-oriented activities based on the attributes associated with those who serve in the military, similar to the 10 bouquets that make a veteran’s wreaths.

Belief in a greater good, love for each other, work ethic and character, honesty and integrity, and pride in our country are just a few of the qualities exemplified in the stories we share about our nation’s veterans and their families.

The Wreaths Across America family understands the need to teach the next generation the cost and value of freedom. Each year because of your dedication and support the mission grows. I am excited to share this year’s theme and upcoming teaching curriculum with you along with a challenge to make 2022 our best year ever, as we all find a way to serve.

Remember – Honor – Teach

With gratitude,

Karen Worcester

Executive Director

#FindAWay2022

Finding a Way to Serve

As we approach the anniversary of the end of the Battle of the Bulge (officially, Jan 25^th), Joe Reagan, our Director of Veteran and Military Outreach, reflects on this year’s theme and the stories of those who found a way to serve in their communities after returning from war.

This year, National Wreaths Across America Day will be held nationwide on Saturday, December 17, 2022.

How Can You Join the Mission in 2022?

Sponsor a Wreath: Honor veterans in your local community by sponsoring a live, balsam veteran’s wreath that will be placed on the grave of an American hero in 2022. Every $15 received, places a wreath. It is never too early to support the mission!

Start a Sponsorship Group: As a pay back group, your civic, nonprofit, school or other group can help raise wreath sponsorships for a participating cemetery, and $5 for each $15 wreath sponsorship raised will be given back to you for you to support your program locally. Since 2007, WAA has given back approximately $17million through December 2021, to other organizations through this program!

As a 3-for-2 group, a third wreath is placed for every two wreath sponsorships made. This is a great way to ensure as many veterans as possible are honored and remembered at the participating cemetery your support!

Add a New Location: Coordinate a wreath-laying ceremony at a cemetery or veteran’s memorial in your community. Determine if this location is already participating by checking our website. We have resources to help you plan your ceremony and ensure community involvement and success!

Volunteer: Volunteer to place wreaths on National Wreaths Across America Day – Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022 – at any of our 3,1000+ participating locations. Involve your friends and family to honor our servicemen, women and families.

You’re Invited!

Join us on VIRTUALLY on Thursday, Feb. 3, at 12pm EST/9am PST, as we celebrate the lives and legacy of the Four Chaplains and all those lost on the USAT Dorchester 79 years ago.

Wreaths Across America will be LIVE from the Baslam Valley Chapel and tip lands where balsam is harvested to make veterans’ wreaths for Wreaths Across America.

New Year’s Resolution 2022: Tune in to Wreaths Across America Radio!

Wreaths Across America Radio is a 24/7 Internet stream. Its unique format provides informational and inspiring content about members of the U.S. armed forces, their families, military veterans, and volunteers throughout the country and overseas who support the mission to Remember, Honor and Teach.