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    A wreath for every headstone

    A wreath for every headstone

    Photo By Staff Sgt. Bill Boecker | Members of the surrounding communities laid commemorative wreaths for the fallen...... read more read more

    CAMP RIPLEY, MN, UNITED STATES

    12.14.2015

    Courtesy Story

    Minnesota National Guard

    By Cpl. William Boecker
    1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division

    CAMP RIPLEY, Minn. - Community members from around the region assembled for the National Remembrance Ceremony at the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery located just outside Camp Ripley Training Center Dec. 12, 2015. The annual ceremony, held by the nonprofit organization Wreaths for the Fallen, honors deceased service members from every branch of the military.

    “We are all proud to be Americans that live in a free society made up of many people and races from many walks of life,” said Vice President of Wreaths for the Fallen, Norville Pervier. “The freedoms we enjoy today have not come without a price.”

    Following the ceremony, the crowd – made up of veterans, family members young and old, and grateful Americans – dispersed to every section of the cemetery to lay commemorative wreaths on every marker of every fallen hero. Salutes were rendered and prayers made during the quiet, dress-right-dress placing of the wreaths.

    Support for Wreaths for the Fallen has grown tremendously since 2006, when five ceremonial wreaths were brought to the annual Remembrance Ceremony by the Little Falls and Randall American Legions. Now, leaving no marker bare, more than 4,100 wreaths are placed throughout the cemetery.

    Rosie Hauge, a first-time volunteer for Wreaths for the Fallen, came out to the event to celebrate the holidays and honor her husband who was put to rest on the grounds only three years ago.

    “I’m amazed at the amount of people that come out to support our fallen heroes,” said Hauge. “It warms my heart that this many people care.”

    “We do this as a way to say, ‘Thank you,’ for the nights slept freezing in a tent or sweating in the desert, for the lonely days spent missing loved ones, for wounds suffered fighting evil and the precious moments missed back home,” said Pervier.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 12.14.2015
    Date Posted: 12.14.2015 17:17
    Story ID: 184500
    Location: CAMP RIPLEY, MN, US

    Web Views: 68
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN