Members of the Jay Frank L. Mitchell VFW Post 3335 plan to decorate a Livermore Falls cemetery with Christmas wreaths supplied by Wreaths Across America.

A brief ceremony honoring veterans, followed by laying of wreaths on veterans’ headstones, will be held Saturday, Dec. 17, at 11 a.m, at Holy Cross Cemetery, located at the corner of Park Street and Diamond Road.

The public is invited to attend and assist with laying of the wreaths.

Holy Cross Cemetery will be one of more than 3,400 cemeteries nationwide receiving wreaths this Christmas season, to remember the fallen, and honor those that serve and their families, according to a news release from Jim Manter, VFW Post 3335 judge advocate.

“Post 3335 is thrilled to be one of the first local veterans organizations to receive wreaths, for a local cemetery,” said Manter. “Through the efforts of our Auxiliary member Alice Robinson, and the generosity of local citizens, we will receive 55 wreaths to place on veterans graves.”

Manter added, “This is a first for us locally, and hope the awareness of this annual opportunity will grow larger over the next few years, and we can place a wreath on all of our veterans’ graves, same as we place flags on them for Memorial Day. Although 55 sounds like a lot of wreaths, we have 460 veterans interred at Holy Cross alone, and a total of over 1,598 veterans in all the cemeteries in Jay, Livermore, and Livermore Falls area.”

Holy Cross will be the 15th cemetery in Maine to decorate Veterans graves with WAA support, along with 3,600 cemeteries nationwide.

The wreaths were donated in conjunction with a Wreaths Across America program, that provides fundraising opportunities for its wreaths. VFW Post 3335 set up a donation drive from local citizens and veterans organizations, that allowed a donation of one wreath to Post 3335, for every two wreaths that were purchased through WAA for National Veterans cemeteries. Local citizens also banded together to make additional wreaths from scratch. In addition, the post is credited with raising funds for 66 wreaths, that will be headed to Arlington National Cemetery, in Washington, D.C.

This year, WAA will be making, and providing for free, over 2.6 million wreaths. WAA is located in Columbia Falls, and was founded by Morrill Worcester.

Each local veterans organization will receive a wreath to place on their Posts’ name sake grave site: Frank L. Mitchell VFW Post 3335; George Bunton American Legion Post 10; and Lane-Dube (David Lane/Andy Dube) AMVETS Post 33.

This years’ efforts were co-chaired by Robinson and Manter.

“One wreath can be purchased for $15, while two cost $30 with another one provided free,” said Robinson.

For additional information, call 207-897-5112.

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