By TRICIA NEAL, Staff Writer
Somerset — A small crowd braved chilly weather Saturday to be part of the Mill Springs National Cemetery’s fourth annual Wreaths Across America ceremony.
While the event is still fairly new to Pulaski County, the story of Wreaths Across American began 17 years ago when the Worcester Wreath Company began a tradition of placing wreaths on the headstones of fallen soldiers at the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Today, wreath-laying ceremonies are held at more than 300 national cemeteries, including Mill Springs, at the same time — noon Eastern Time — on the second Saturday in December.
Patriot Guard Ride Captain Mike Lodico once again was the featured speaker at yesterday’s ceremony.
Lodico shared a quote from President Ronald Reagan: “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
Several donated live evergreen wreaths were placed at the graves of soldiers in the cemetery by Somerset Police Explorers and members of Boy Scout Troop #81.
One of the wreaths was placed at the grave of Sgt. Brent Woods, who fought during the Indian Wars and received the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1881. Woods’ remains were originally placed in an unmarked grave, but they were moved to the Mill Springs National Cemetery in 1984 after a campaign was started to rebury his remains with full military honors. Woods is the only person from Pulaski County to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor and the second African-American from Kentucky to do so.
Wreaths in honor of soldiers of the U.S. Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marines were also dedicated, placed by local veterans under the American flag located near the center of the cemetery. A wreath for the more than 93,000 soldiers listed as POW/MIA was also placed there.
For more information on the event and its history, visit: www.wreaths-across-america.org.
