-
Honoring Our Nation’s Greatest Heroes:
Arlington National Cemetery Tours conducts tours of the sacred grounds every day of the year except on two days. On Saturday, December 16, 2023, and Saturday, January 20, 2024, the tour will be closed, and our team will work together to support Wreaths Across America and their mission of honoring our nation’s greatest heroes. On these days, we’ll assist the organization at Arlington National Cemetery in placing ribboned wreaths at the foot of most headstones in a touching ceremony that celebrates the lives and service of our military veterans.The Beginning of a Beautiful Tradition:
What began as a gracious gesture by Morrill Worcester and the Worcester Wreath Company due to a surplus of wreaths, today Wreaths Across America is a national nonprofit organization that teaches about the service and sacrifice of our nation’s veterans. Last year, 1.2 million remembrance wreaths were placed across the country at over 1,228 locations, and close to a million volunteers donated their time on National Wreaths Across America Day.
National Wreaths Across America Day – December 16, 2023:
Laying of the Wreaths:
All gates into the Cemetery will open at 8:00 AM to allow volunteers to enter the grounds. There will be 65 wreath trucks located throughout the Cemetery which will open for wreath distribution no later than 9:00 AM.
How You Can Help Make a Difference:
Because Wreaths Across America receives no government funding, their efforts are made possible by generous individuals and corporate sponsors and by the thousands of volunteers who organize and attend wreath-laying ceremonies across the country. Here are a few of the many ways you can get involved.Volunteer At Arlington: Donate your time by helping distribute wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery’s wreath-laying ceremony on National Wreaths Across America Day – December 16, 2023. Volunteers need to sign up on WreathsAcrossAmerica.org and receive a timed ticket. Ticket will list time and entry point.
Sponsor A Wreath: Consider contributing a financial gift by sponsoring a wreath to honor our fallen heroes.
History of Wreaths Across America at Arlington:
1992: 5,000 wreaths were donated by Morrill Worcester and Worcester Wreath Co.
2007: Wreaths Across America was formed as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
2012: 1 millionth wreath is placed at Arlington National Cemetery
2014: For the first time, most headstones at Arlington National Cemetery received a wreath – 227,000 in total.
2016: 25th year that wreaths were placed at Arlington National Cemetery and 44,000 volunteers helped layover 245,000 wreaths on our grounds
2017: More than 1,560,000 veterans’ wreaths placed at 1,422 participating locations. 90,000+ volunteers
2018: 1.8 million remembrance wreaths were placed across the country at 1,640 participating locations, with more than two million volunteers
2019: National Wreaths Across America Day Sees the Placement of 2.2 Million Veterans’ Wreaths at 2,158 Participating Cemeteries
2020: National Wreaths Across America Day Sees the Placement of 1.7 Million Veterans’ Wreaths at 2,557 Participating Locations Across the Country
2021: 2.4 million veterans’ wreaths were placed in total across the country at 3,137 participating locations. More than two million volunteers helped place wreaths, a third of whom were children
2022: Placed over a 2.7 million wreaths in total
