Wreaths Across America and a network of volunteers place wreaths on millions of graves in military cemeteries across the country and a convoy carrying wreaths passed through Southbury on Tuesday on the way to Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
People including Barbara Branagan-Mitchell and Keith Mitchell, of New Milford, showed support as vehicles carrying Gold and Blue Star families, veterans and American patriots rolled through Southbury for the annual escort.
Branagan-Mitchell said her husband is a veteran and she has been doing Wreaths Across America in New Milford for five years.
“This is the first time that they’ve come to Southbury, so this is extremely exciting to have this convoy coming in here today,” she said.
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“I think I’m gonna cry. I know I’m gonna cry. It’s really quite stunning,” she said.
“My heart sings for these people who have served our country and have sacrificed so much,” Keith Mitchell said.
The Wreaths Across America tradition started more than 30 years ago when Morrill Worcester, a wreathmaker in Maine, drove a single truck filled with 5,000 wreaths to Arlington National Cemetery as a way to remember, honor and teach about those who served. (You can read more about the mission and the history here.)
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“This is pretty special this morning, the music, and you can feel the pride in the community and that’s what the country is about and we just love it. We love the patriotism,” Karen Worcester, Worcester’s wife and the executive director of Wreaths Across America, said.
Karen Worcester said the act of laying a wreath on a grave is only one part of her family’s mission and it's one she hopes to continue for years to come.
“It's just so imperative that we teach the kids to love this country we're given through the lives of men and women served,” Worcester said. “They've been given the gift of freedom, but you don't give a priceless gift and not teach the next generation how to take care of it and I think we all need to step up and do that,” she said.
On Saturday, 3.1 million wreaths will be placed at 4,200 locations across the country.
Keith Mitchell said he and Barbara will be placing wreaths at a cemetery in New Milford next weekend and called it an “honoring experience.”
