Wreaths Across America returns to Mountain View Cemetery

Updated 12/9:

Wreaths Across America, or WAA, is in need of volunteers this afternoon after the wreath delivery was delayed several hours.

Originally slated for delivery at 9 a.m. this morning, the 175 boxes of wreaths have been significantly delayed, according to an email from WAA Location Coordinator Delaney Dreckman. At 9:10 a.m., Dreckman received a call that the truck was still 150 miles away and wouldn’t be arriving until nearly 12:30 p.m.

Dreckman was grateful the initial 9 a.m. turnout was strong and said WAA will still need volunteers to unload and unbox more than 1,500 wreaths for the Dec. 18 ceremony.

Volunteers should contact Dreckman at (760) 458-2603 or via email.

Original Story:

Returning for its third year, Longmont is joining more than 3,100 locations nationwide in honoring fallen service members with Wreaths Across America, or WAA. 

The volunteer-led ceremony will lay more than 1,500 wreaths on the headstones of fallen service members at Mountain View Cemetery on the morning of Dec. 18. 

The service will be led by WAA Location Coordinator Delaney Dreckman. Dreckman will be joined by American Legion Post 32 Honor Guard and its chaplain, with Girl Scout Troop 74447, Longmont High School Choir and local veterans, she said.

Fundraising efforts for WAA made it so that every veteran headstone will have a wreath this year, Dreckman said, in keeping with the organization’s mission to never forget a sacrifice made in honor of this country.

For Dreckman, whose husband, stepfather and grandfathers served in the military, this year holds a special poignancy. Having her first son added weight to the WAA mission of “remember, honor and teach,” she said.

“Now I’m not just telling people to teach their children the value of freedom, I have that responsibility to do it at home as well,” Dreckman said.

Volunteers and donations poured in over the last month, she said, and the support promised a successful ceremony in its third year. According to Dreckman, there were around 150 people in attendance last year and she was hopeful for an even bigger turn out this year.

Ahead of the ceremony, WAA is looking for volunteers to ensure the service goes off without a hitch. On Thursday at 9 a.m., WAA is having 175 boxes of wreaths delivered to Howe Mortuary at 439 Coffman Street. Each box holds nine wreaths and weighs around 36 lbs., Dreckman said, so more hands will make the unloading easier.

After the unloading, Dreckman said there are two more opportunities for residents to help out. On the morning of the ceremony, WAA needs volunteers to help transport wreaths from Howe Mortuary to Mountain View Cemetery. Dreckman also asked for people to join them on Friday at noon to mark veteran gravesites at Mountain View Cemetery.

“That’s a really important day because it makes the ceremony a lot easier,” Dreckman said. “Because we aren’t at a national cemetery so not every grave is a veteran’s or mentions that they were a veteran.”

Locals looking to help out with the wreath unboxing or headstone marking can reach out to Dreckman at (760) 458-2603 or via email. The national wreath-laying ceremony will take place at Mountain View Cemetery on Dec. 18 at 10 a.m. and is free to the public.