‘Wreaths’ gets early start to honor fallen in Farragut
Area groups are joining efforts to have wreaths from Wreaths Across America placed on veterans’ graves in Farragut area’s three cemeteries and are looking for volunteers to help and/or donate.
On Dec. 16 of every year, volunteers across the country place wreaths on the graves of veterans as part of Wreaths Across America. This year volunteers will be placing wreaths on graves in Pleasant Forest, the Annex to Pleasant Forest and Choto Masonic Lodge 253 F&AM in Concord.
“I’m reaching out to the managers of Virtue (Cumberland Presbyterian Church) cemetery to see if they want to be involved this year, and I’m working with the (Town) — we’re hoping the (Town) will do a ceremony,” said Marilyn Childress, president Veterans Heritage Site Foundation who is working with the Wreaths Across America organization. “We haven’t got that confirmed yet.”
Currently, her volunteers are conducting fundraisers to raise money for the wreaths, marking graves to identify veterans and are cleaning up gravesites and repairing stones when necessary.
“We’ll be placing a (notice), an outreach to people who want to come and help place the wreaths,” Childress said. “Some family members come and do it.
“Members of Choto Lodge helped last year,” she added.
To donate $17 toward a wreath for a veteran, visit www.wreathsacross america.org/TN0190P
To volunteer, contact Childress at marilyn.childress@veteransheritagesite.org
“One of the things we (VHSF) do, in the year, is participate in Wreaths Across America,” she said. “We have chosen to try to find veterans buried in the smaller cemeteries.”
Their efforts started in 2020 in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where they asked park service personnel to help them get a list of veterans buried in the Smoky Mountains.
“By that December of that year, we had almost 200 names. Currently, we have 240 veterans buried in the Smokies at 63 different cemeteries.”
Then, her organization spread out its effort, according to Childress, also a member with the Cabot Station Daughters of American Revolution chapter.
“I was at a DAR workshop, and Mona Smith, also a DAR member who lives in Farragut with ties close to the Choto Masonic Lodge 253 F&AM in Concord, did a project to identify the veterans buried in that cemetery,” Childress said. “I approached her last year about placing wreaths (at the lodge cemetery) … those got placed during the holidays last year.
“I also noticed the older cemetery at Pleasant Forest had lots of veterans, and a number are Revolutionary War veterans,” she added. “I approached the maintenance people of that cemetery to start doing some of that cemetery this year, as well as the annex across the street (from Pleasant Forest) … so were doing those three for sure.”
Childress also found veterans’ gravesites in Blount, Cock and Knox counties, and is expanding into Jefferson and Hamblen counties’ cemeteries and more of Knox County’s cemeteries to find veterans’ graves.
“We have it set up with Wreaths Across America that those who want to honor their loved ones in the smaller cemeteries, we have a method that’s easier for those folks to be able to get a wreath to place on their loved one’s grave that’s a veteran,” she said.
