Wreaths Across America makes a stop in Warner Robins

WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — Although it was cold outside, in a small trailer on Watson Boulevard, there was no shortage of warm feelings towards veterans — especially feelings of thankfulness and remembrance towards the fallen.

Wreaths Across America, in partnership with the Sukey Hart Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, held a pop-up exhibit Saturday outside of the Watson Home Depot. The exhibit featured a ceremonial wreath-laying, information about the organization, and a touching video highlighting Wreaths Across America’s mission and outreach efforts.

    “Our mission, our pure purpose for being here, is to remember, honor, and teach, with emphasis on the word ‘remember,’” said Stefan Brann, a Mobile Education Exhibit Driver and Ambassador for Wreaths Across America. They make a great effort to show thankfulness with each wreath they lay, and they encourage others to do the same.

“During the first part of COVID, everyone was wearing a face mask,” Brann said. “I would tell the kids, ‘if you see a veteran, a man or woman in uniform, just go up and say thank you for your service.’ Because I guarantee you, underneath that mask, they’re going to be smiling.”

Wreaths Across America is a non-profit organization based out of Columbia Falls, Maine. Their founder had won a trip to Arlington National Cemetery. His memory of the trip stuck with him and inspired him to start laying wreaths. 30 years ago, Wreaths Across America laid 5,000 wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery, and it only grew from there. In 2005, a published photo of the wreaths in a military magazine put Wreaths Across America on the map. In 2007, they formed a non-profit, and they saw meteoric growth throughout the organization.

“By 2012, we had grown from one location in the United States to 826 locations,” Brann said. “We laid our millionth wreath at Arlington National Cemetery in 2012.”

After their millionth wreath, their outreach began to shift internationally.

 ”In 2018 we undertook a huge project. We shipped over 9,000 wreaths to Normandy [France] to say ‘thank you’ to the men that we lost on Omaha Beach,” Brann said. 

Wreaths Across America also shipped over 14,000 wreaths to Luxembourg and the Netherlands, and their international efforts sent wreaths to 24 locations around the globe. In total, they’ve laid around 2.4 million wreaths. 

Statewide, The Daughters of the American Revolution helped sponsor wreath-laying at Andersonville National Cemetery, about 50 miles south of Warner Robins. Marquita Crews, a member of Daughters of the American Revolution, recalls a “divine delivery” at Andersonville.

“[For] 13 solders that had fallen in Afghanistan, we actually had 13 extra wreaths,” said Crews. “They were honored at Andersonville after the normal presentation at the cemetery. We had a veteran honor each of the 13 soldiers and they were named.”

“I heard that story,” Brann replied. “That doesn’t happen very often.”

For Wreaths Across America, remembering the fallen is a cause they’re extremely passionate about.

“A person dies twice,” Brann said. “The first time when you take your last breath, the second time when somebody says your name for the last time. So when we lay a wreath, we say the veteran’s name, we thank them for their service, and as long as we’re saying the name, their soul and experience will live on.”

The meaning goes deeper than remembrance. A wreath is made up of ten separate balsam bouquets, each mirroring a special quality that Wreaths Across America believes our veterans embody: belief, love, strength, honesty, humility, ambition, optimism, concern, pride, and their hopes and dreams. The evergreen trees that the wreaths are made of exemplify longevity and endurance. The big red bow on each wreath illustrates the great sacrifice made by a fallen veteran. The pine-scented wreath symbolizes purity and simplicity, and the circular shape is a metaphor for eternity.

Anyone wanting to start a wreath-laying ceremony can become a Volunteer Location Coordinator by contacting Wreaths Across America at (877) 385-9504, or by visiting their website, wreathsacrossamerica.org.

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