Celebrating Our Truckers
Kevin says driving Armellini's load of wreaths in the escort to VA National Cemetery in Lake Worth along with the Walmart trucks is a meaningful experience for him emotionally because of honoring veterans, but he says there's also a more physical kind of excitement as a professional driver.
Special Event This Weekend
On Saturday, July 29, 2017, members of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (the Old Guard), including unit Commanders, the U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, Continental Color Guard and the U.S. Army Drill Team, will be in Downeast Maine to participate in a veterans remembrance tree-tagging event.
I'm An American
This performance in December of 2016 by members of the Kennebunk Elementary School's Kids Chorus inspired the 2017 theme for Wreaths Across America, "I'm an American!"
This Week's Top Social Media Stories
In 2013 on the cusp of officially becoming a senior citizen Dr. Frederick Lough swore in to become an active duty soldier. But that's not where his military career began.
The military has very talented photographers in the ranks, and they're always capturing what life as a service member is like during training and at war. Here are the best military photos.
A yellow lab named named Taylor served her country in not one, but two deployments. She was so good at her job protecting fellow soldiers that the Taliban had a bounty on her head.
Congratulations to Our Winner
The results are in. With a total of 2,579 votes, Christa Parker is the winner of our Pictures of Patriotism photo contest! Thank you to Christa and all who participated!
Christa's photo is titled, "No Greater Love." The moment captured in the photo is Christa and her husband, MSG Christopher Parker, at the funeral of their son PFC Garrett Parker. They had just received his flag. Christa, thank you for sharing this personal moment with all of us. We will never forget the service and sacrifice of your son.
Christa has chosen The Bridgeport Cemetery to receive 100 wreaths to honor 100 veterans!
Mark Your Calendars
We would love to hear from you on any of these channels:
Do you know of a patriotic story for or about our veterans, that we should be sharing? We would love to hear it!
You can submit the basic details here, and we will follow up with you.
Note: Have you ever had a conversation with a "reporter-bot?" We set this up to collect stories 24/7 or whenever it is convenient for you, and then the WAA Social Media Team can join the conversation. We look forward to hearing from you!
Did you miss one of our recent newsletters? You can see the archive and update your email settings (there is a MONTHLY or a WEEKLY option) in our new Newsletter Central.
Join us on December 16th (the 3rd Saturday in December), 2017 for National Wreaths Across America Day. Use this map to find a location and sign up to volunteer. Can't find a location near you? You can start one (adding new locations for 2017)!
"Remember this.... In truth a person dies twice, once when he stops breathing, and a second time when somebody mentions his or her name for the last time. Join us in December when over one million volunteers nationwide, will say the names of a million fallen out loud, to make sure they will never be forgotten."
This Week's Newsletter Is Sponsored By:
Walmart
Many WAA supporters will recognize the support that Walmart has given each year, particularly on the transportation side of things as they donate time, fuel, and equipment to help deliver the wreaths nationwide. Many of the Walmart drivers are selected in recognition of their own years of military service. In addition to supporting the WAA mission on the transportation and logistics side, the Walmart Foundation also sponsors over 10,000 wreaths placed at a number of participating locations including Arlington National Cemetery and Fayetteville National in Arkansas.
