More than 2,300 wreaths will placed today at veterans’ graves in Orleans County
Photo by Tom Rivers: Mike Donahue is the bugler while Taps was played as part of the Honor Guard on Dec. 14, 2024 during the first Wreaths Across America at Mount Albion Cemetery.
By Ginny Kropf and Tom Rivers
More than 2,300 wreaths will be set at veterans’ graves today at cemeteries in Albion, Holley/Clarendon, Medina and Lyndonville.
All four are hosting ceremonies at noon today as art of Wreaths Across America.
Volunteers will be placing 300 wreaths at Hillside Cemetery, about 450 in Lyndonville at Lynhaven and other sites, 360 at Mount Albion Cemetery, and over 1,260 in Medina at Boxwood, St. Mary’s and other cemeteries.
Medina was the first community in Orleans County to embrace Wreaths Across America in 2013. The wreaths are purchased for $17 each. The first year Medina had nine wreaths and now has over 1,200.
More than 5,600 communities around the country will honor service members laid to rest as part of Wreaths Across America.
Wreaths Across America began when Morrill Worcester, owner of a wreath company in Maine, visited Arlington National Cemetery and realized many veterans’ graves did not have wreaths.
That Christmas Worcester had extra wreaths and arranged to have them shipped to Arlington and placed on graves in the older part of the cemetery which had fewer visitors. His action picked up support, and since then Wreaths Across American has become a national tradition.
Kathy Blackburn pushed to start the effort in Medina and coordinated the program for about a decade. Tom Snyder is now heading Wreaths Across America in Medina.
He said 1,260 wreaths will be placed on veterans’ graves in Medina. A brief ceremony will begin at noon at Boxwood Cemetery, with Nik Mroz, director of Orleans County Veterans’ Services, as emcee.
Following the ceremony, which includes placing a wreath on the grave of a veteran from each branch of the military, volunteers will start placing the wreaths on the rest of the veterans’ graves in the cemetery. Snyder commended the Medina DPW, who placed the boxes of wreaths in strategic locations throughout the cemeteries.
Last year, Blackburn felt it was time to give up her role in the wreath project and turned it over to local businesswoman Gloria Snyder. This year Tom Snyder, who is Gloria’s brother-in-law and a Navy veteran, agreed to take on the project.
“I also take a wreath every year to my father’s grave at Mount Albion,” Snyder said.
Snyder encourages the public to consider buying a wreath for a veteran’s grave. During the month of December, they can be purchased for $17, buy one, get one free. Any resident may purchase one or make a donation to the project at the village office on Park Avenue.
