Frigid temperatures don’t keep volunteers from removing wreaths at National Cemetery of the Alleghenies
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On the frigid Jan. 22 morning, Bonnie Wishner noticed as she drove out of her garage the temperature display in her GMC Terrain dropped from 14 degrees to 10 to 4.
“I said to my husband, how low will it go?” said Wishner of Strabane. “He told me these vehicles are sold all over the country so it will display negative temperatures if it gets that cold.”
Her husband Brennan Wishner was correct.
The screen read -3 degrees, then – 2.
“I was like, you’ve got to be kidding me,” she said. “But I kept driving because nothing was going to stop us.”
The couple was joining a group of 150-200 volunteers who braved the extreme cold to remove the 14,500 wreaths on veterans’ graves at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies in Cecil, Washington County. It was -1 when volunteers met at 8 a.m. The event is called “wreath retirement.”
The wreaths with red bows had been placed by each of the white tombstones on Dec. 18 as part of National Wreaths Across America Day. The mission for this event was: Remember those we lost. Honor those currently serving. And teach the next generation about freedom.
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The wreaths are not decorations, Edward Hajduk, the director of the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs said at that December memorial service.
“They are wreaths of remembrance,” he said. “This can be a hard time of the year for families who are missing a loved one.”
Hajduk told the volunteers on Jan. 22 that many of the men and women buried in the cemetery endured extreme weather conditions during their service to their country. Volunteers brought shovels and other tools to remove the wreaths, which were frozen to the ground. It took several hours.
“Those veterans couldn’t have said that it was too cold to go out,” Bonnie Wishner said. “They went out in all kinds of weather.”
This was the couple’s eighth year volunteering.
Bonnie Wishner is the team member of the Red White and Blue Team from Washington County, which includes the Blue Knights, the local Masonic lodge, local fire department and other community members. The organization hosts a motorcycle ride in the summer to raise money for wreaths.
The wreaths honor veterans from each branch of the service — Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Space Force, Merchant Marine – as well as POW/MIA.
The National Cemetery of the Alleghenies conducted its first interment on Aug. 15, 2005.
The cemetery encompasses 292 acres.
Each wreath costs $15. Every one of them was sponsored for this year’s Wreaths Across America event — the 16th for the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, said Brynnly Schwartz, Wreaths Across America coordinator.
National Cemetery of the Alleghenies is one of 2,700 cemeteries that participated in all 50 states. There are more than 2 million volunteers nationwide.
The wreaths are removed in January to cleanse the cemetery and allow families to place flowers or hearts for Valentine’s Day and other occasions. The cemetery also has ceremonies on Memorial Day and Veterans Day.
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Helping to remove the wreaths was Michael Brothers Companies, based in the Baldwin/Bethel Park area.
Boyd Jones, operations coordinator for Michael Brothers, said they’ve collaborated with Wreaths Across America in the past. This was the first year with a dedicated plan to recycle pretty much everything except the red ribbons.
Michael Brothers owners Tom and Rob Milani donated employees’ time and the vehicles. The company also donated dumpsters for the cardboard boxes when the wreaths were unloaded in December.
“Our owners are the best,” Jones said. “They know these are special wreaths, and they care about these veterans and wanted to do something to give back. It was definitely a success. I am super excited about it. Wreaths Across America is such a great organization.”
Volunteers removed the ribbons. The remaining green parts of the wreaths were taken away by Michaels Brothers in four, 30-yard dumpsters. The wreaths will be shredded to become mulch or compost. The metal wire portions, which form the wreath, will be recycled into other products, Jones said.
New this year, some discarded wreaths were donated to Hillcrest Farms Equine Sanctuary in Washington, Pa., for its rescued horses and donkeys.
The date for this year is Dec. 17.
Wreaths Across America was begun by Maine businessman Morrill Worcester in 1992. He owns Worcester Wreath Co. of Harrington, Maine. He donated extra wreaths to Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
“We were truly blessed to have so many people come out in the cold to help us in the bitter cold,” said Bonnie Wishner, who had placed wreaths on relatives graves as well as for a woman who sent her a letter asking if she could place one for a loved one. “It is important to honor these veterans. We will be back again this year on Dec. 17 for the next Wreaths Across America Day.”