December 20, 2023 by
Andrew Keely, 16, a junior at Farragut High School, was among 14 members of the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, Smoky Mountain Anchor Division, to participate in the Wreaths Across America ceremony Saturday, Dec 16, at Knoxville National Cemetery. “I feel like for some people it can be hard to connect to what we’re doing here because … obviously, none of us were alive when these people died,” said Keely, who has been with the Sea Cadets for two years. “It feels like we’ve grown up with security and that’s just what we know. We haven’t seen people going out to protect our security. It takes looking at it with a different perspective.” The national program goal is to place a wreath on “every hero’s grave” each December, he said.
The U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps is an official youth leadership development program of the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard. According to the USNSCC website, its overall mission is to “teach America’s young people about the Navy’s traditions through hands-on experiential training held on military installations to imbue the highest ideals of honor, respect, service and commitment.”
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