Veterans honored in cemetery wreath laying

By RYAN LANCASTER

Staff Reporter

Nearly 200 Christmas wreaths were placed on the graves of fallen service members Saturday in a ceremony at the Washington State Veterans Cemetery near Medical Lake.

Cemetery director Richard Cesler welcomed hundreds of family members, volunteers and guests who gathered to participate in the first of what will be an annual tradition at the cemetery, which opened on Memorial Day and has so far interred 379 veterans and spouses of veterans.

“The freedoms we enjoy today have not come without a price,” Cesler said. “Lying here before us in this cemetery and in cemeteries throughout this nation are men and women who gave their lives so we could live with freedom and without fear. We thank those who have given their lives to keep us free. We will not forget you, we shall remember.”

The tradition of laying wreaths to honor veterans during the holiday season began in 1992, when Worcester Wreath Company donated 5,000 wreaths to be placed at the headstones of an older section of Arlington National Cemetery. Today, more than 400 cemeteries and memorial sites across the nation participate in Wreaths Across America, including 10 other Washington state locations.

The Ladies and Gentlemen of the Washington State Veterans Cemetery led the local effort to have wreaths purchased for $15 and donated to the cemetery. Seven of these were presented at the outset of Saturday's ceremony, one for those missing in action or taken as prisoners of war, the other six to honor each branch of the military and the Merchant Marine.

After a prayer, rifle salute and a rendition of taps, attendees were asked to place wreaths on graves in two sections of the cemetery as well as at the base of the columbary wall. Dozens of people trudged through lanes of mud and snow, many in search of fallen loved ones, while volunteers and active service members stood by to offer assistance. A young Air Force cadet held the arm of an elderly woman as she laid a circle of fresh boughs against one headstone before muttering a soft, “Merry Christmas.”

Ryan Lancaster can be reached at [email protected].