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Remembering Heroes: The Vital Role of Truck Drivers in Wreaths Across America

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Every holiday season since 1992, the Worcester family of Harrington, Maine, has carried out a heartfelt mission to honor fallen veterans. What began as a small, community-driven project to place wreaths on gravestones has since become the nationwide event now known as Wreaths Across America Day. 

On December 14, 2024, millions of Americans came together to commemorate the sacrifices of our nation’s service members under the overall theme of “Remember, Honor, Teach.” Across more than 3,800 participating locations, including local, state, and national cemeteries, volunteers worked to lay wreaths and express their gratitude for those who gave everything for our country. 

Among the many dedicated contributors to this year’s success were truck drivers, who have been an integral part of this monumental effort since the beginning.  

NFI Industries, a leading transportation company, played a key role in ensuring the delivery of wreaths to cemeteries nationwide, with five exceptional drivers helping out across the country: Jason W. of Baldwinsville, NY, Doug E. of Fort Wayne, IN, Jeff M. of Fort Wayne, IN, Javil D. of Manchester, CT, and Gerald M. of Latrobe, PA. 

 

From Humble Beginnings to a Great Mission

The story of Wreaths Across America started out in 1992, when the Worcester family arranged for surplus wreaths from their business to be laid at Arlington National Cemetery. Initially a small gesture supported by local volunteers and one trucking company, the family’s initiative gained national attention in 2005 after photos of wreath-covered graves went viral. 

This pivotal moment inspired the creation of the Wreaths Across America nonprofit in 2007, with the mission to “Remember, Honor, and Teach.” Since then, the event has expanded to include thousands of locations, supported by countless volunteers and transportation partners. Today, Wreaths Across America Day is recognized by Congress as a day to reflect on the bravery of America’s fallen soldiers and honor their memories. 

 

NFI Industries and Five Driver’s Impact in 2024

Truck drivers have always been the backbone of Wreaths Across America’s logistics, and this year, NFI Industries stood out for their remarkable dedication.  

Jason, Doug, Javil, Gerald, and Jeff proudly joined the Honor Fleet this past year, delivering loads of wreaths to cemeteries across the country. Their efforts were instrumental in ensuring that families and communities could pay tribute to the fallen during this meaningful event. 

Jason W., a veteran himself, has been running WAA loads for NFI Industries since 2019 and delivered two loads for Wreaths Across America in 2024. Jason’s personal connection and respect for the fallen has inspired him to take part in Wreaths Across America for the past five years.  

“It’s always been a humbling experience,” Jason said, “because it’s a way for our country to give back to those that paid the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, and it’s one way to make it so that they’re never forgotten. So it was very humbling for me, being that I am a veteran. There are so many veterans still doing what they need to for the nation.” 

This annual event serves as a powerful reminder for all of us to express our gratitude, empathy, and unwavering support. Many veterans and their families continue to face personal struggles that deeply impact their lives. Jason, with great vulnerability, shared some of his own internal battles since returning from service. “With the time of year it is, it’s so busy with the holidays, but a lot of people struggle this time of year,” he explained. “I’m glad that there’s things like this that can like occupy our time, especially our veterans’ time, get their mind off it into something so much more, even though it’s kind of somber event, but it’s the pride in it.”  

For Jason and many others, Wreaths Across America offers much more than a tribute to the fallen—it’s an opportunity to forge personal connections and support one another. It’s a significant event not only to honor those who have sacrificed so much, but also to provide much-needed support for those still with us. 

Doug E., another veteran, also felt a deep personal connection to the mission. Along with delivering wreaths across the nation in 2024, he has also taken part in Martinsville, IN.,’s Taps on the Square event for the last 12 years. This weekly event also honors fallen veterans, as well as fallen firefighters, recovered POW/MIAs and Rosie the Riveters.  

Jeff M., Javil D., and Gerald M. are also deeply connected to the cause through close loved ones who have served. “I think it’s very important to keep in our minds and our hearts,” Jeff said. “They did a service for us. That’s why we’re free today.” 

This year, both Javil and Gerald stepped up to take on the crucial responsibility of rescuing loads and ensuring that wreaths were delivered on time. Their dedication to the cause highlights the profound respect they hold for the fallen and their commitment to making sure every wreath is placed in honor of a hero. 

“It was an honor, because NFI considered me to represent and bring this load. It felt like they considered me to be part of a family and a tribe,” Javil explained.  

“I would absolutely recommend it to anybody to transport this load,” Javil continued, “because it is very self-rewarding. It’s not only for Veterans, I understand that it is for fallen heroes across America. You know, it could be for cops, any first responders, like firefighters or even EMTs that put their lives on the line just to save and protect others.” 

Gerald shared a similar sense of fulfillment. “I’m really glad I did, because, like I said, I met some really great people and saw firsthand what it truly means to them to be doing this. It was a great opportunity,” he said. 

 

The Vital Role of Truckers in Wreaths Across America

Since the event’s inception, truck drivers have been integral to its success. These professionals are responsible for hauling millions of wreaths each year, forming the Honor Fleet that crisscrosses the country to ensure every participating cemetery receives their delivery. 

Each December, the convoy known as “the world’s largest veteran parade” retraces the original route taken by the Worcester family in 1992, starting in Harrington, Maine, and ending at Arlington National Cemetery. Along the way, drivers stop at schools, veterans’ homes, and monuments to share the Wreaths Across America mission and encourage future generations to honor our nation’s military heroes. 

 

How You Can Get Involved

Inspired by the dedication of drivers like these? There are plenty of ways to support Wreaths Across America: 

  • Volunteer: Register to lay wreaths at a participating location next December. 
  • Drive: Join the Honor Fleet by signing up to transport wreaths to cemeteries nationwide. 
  • Donate: Sponsor a wreath or contribute to transportation costs to support this vital mission. 

You can also help grow the Wreaths Across America network by reaching out to the organization if you know of a cemetery or fallen soldier not yet recognized. 

NFI Industries and its drivers have demonstrated how vital the trucking community is to this meaningful event. Together, their efforts and those of countless volunteers across the country ensure that the legacy of our fallen heroes continues to be honored, remembered, and taught to future generations. 

2023 Wreaths Across America Celebrated Nationwide 

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For the last 30 years, the Worcester family of Harrington, Maine, has led a mission to honor fallen veterans each holiday season by laying wreaths on gravestones across the nation. What started as a small family venture, aided by a local trucking company and a handful of members from their community, has now grown into a nationwide event taking place annually on Wreaths Across America Day.  

 

This year, millions of volunteers from across the United States dedicated their time on December 16th to honor over three million veterans under this year’s theme of “Serve and Succeed.” Taking place at local, state, and national cemeteries in all 50 states, with over 4,225 participating locations, Wreaths Across America has become a powerful symbol of this country’s deep respect and appreciation of each and every fallen soldier.  

 

Keep reading to learn all you need to know about Wreaths Across America, how truckers and their loved ones have played an essential role in supporting this growing tradition nationwide, and what you can do to get involved in next year’s ceremony.  

 

A Timeless Mission Becomes Tradition  

Although the Worcester family first began their efforts to honor fallen soldiers in the Arlington National Cemetery in 1992, it wasn’t until over a decade later, in 2005, that this small project of compassion and respect caught on at a national level.  

 

After photos of the wreaths at the Arlington Cemetery went viral in 2005, the Worcester family’s efforts quickly grew until the nonprofit Wreaths Across America was founded in 2007. With the simple mission of “Remember, honor, and teach,” the movement placed over 100,000 wreaths, helped by over 60,000 volunteers, the following year.  

 

Since then, the organization has grown exponentially. Each year, on the Congress-recognized National Wreaths Across America Day, volunteers, donors, and truckers make it possible to honor these brave women and men by carrying out the Worcester family’s original mission. 

 

Drive My Way employee Casey Fletcher’s family spent this year helping out at the Wreaths Across America ceremony at a local veterans home.

The Importance of Truckers  

Truck drivers have been an essential part of the Wreaths Across America mission since the first event in 1992, when the Worcester family was aided by James Prout, owner of local Maine trucking company Blue Bird Ranch, Inc. Prout helped transport all of the wreaths that year to the Arlington cemetery, a role that hundreds of thousands of truckers have now carried on every year since.  

 

These CDL drivers and transportation companies are responsible for carrying millions of wreaths to each participating location across the country as part of Wreaths Across America’s “Honor Fleet.” Truckers also play a large role in the “world’s largest veteran parade” that happens each year to honor the first trip the Worcester family took in 1992 from Harrington, Maine, to the Arlington National Cemetery.  

 

Now, a procession of truck drivers, local law enforcement, WAA staff, and volunteers make the journey annually on Wreaths Across America day, while stopping at schools, monuments, and veterans’ homes and communities along the way to talk about the Wreaths Across America mission and the importance of honoring the sacrifice made by every fallen soldier.  

 

For many truckers, the mission of WAA is also especially personal. With over 25% of veterans pursing a career in truck driving, CDL drivers across the nation go above and beyond to make sure this tradition continues each year.  

 

At many carriers, it’s common to find drivers who are devoted to veteran affairs year round. NFI Industries employee Jason W. has been involved with Wreaths Across America for the past 3 years, and has made it a goal to travel to the Arlington National Cemetery.  

“It’s things like this that I’m humbled and honored to do,” said Jason W. “It reminds me that even with all the chaos that’s going on in our country right, there are truly people that still care, and our service to our country wasn’t done in vain.”  

How To Get Involved 

Does this sound like the sort of mission you’d love to be a part of? There are many ways to be involved with Wreaths Across America, whether as a volunteer, a trucker, or a donor. Mark your calendars if you’d like to participate in next year’s Wreaths Across America Day on Saturday, December 14, 2024. 

The wreath-laying is usually just one part of a moving ceremony of celebration, acknowledgement, and respect.

 

If you’re interested in supporting transportation, WAA makes it easy for you to sign up to haul a truckload of wreaths in next year’s ceremony. For those looking to volunteer by placing wreaths on site, you can simply register in advance to find out the next steps. If volunteering your time or truck isn’t possible, but you still are interested in supporting the Wreaths Across America mission, consider donating to sponsor a wreath or help out with transportation costs.  

 

Wreaths Across America also continues to grow each year. If you know a fallen soldier you’d like recognized, or there’s a memorial cemetery that still hasn’t made the WAA list, please reach out to someone on the sponsorship team.  

 

 

Wreaths Across America Brings Families Together

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GUEST POST WRITTEN BY BETH GERACI

Volunteering for Wreaths Across America has played a special part in my life. When I learned that the initiative honoring fallen veterans was happening on December 14 this year, I knew it could be special to share the experience with my dad, whose passion for the cause rivals my own.

Normally I volunteer for Wreaths Across America in San Diego, where the sun kisses the ocean in a beautiful backdrop. For today’s ceremony, I found myself in Cleveland, Ohio. When my dad and I departed for Western Reserve National Cemetery, it was snowing. By the time we arrived, snow had turned to rain, but it couldn’t dampen the mood.

Volunteering for Wreaths Across America alongside my dad is an experience I will always cherish. To stand side by side knowing that he feels the same appreciation for America’s fallen and men and women that I do is special. We are bound all the more through this shared experience.

Wreaths Across America Unique from One Cemetery to the Next

Wreaths Across America is a poignant tradition—one that couldn’t happen without the committed CDL truckers who transport wreaths to every military cemetery in the country come December. The drivers are veterans themselves. For them, the Wreaths Across America convoy is an honor like no other.

For volunteers like me and my dad, Wreaths Across America is a heartfelt reminder to reflect on the sacrifices that veterans have made on our behalf. At every Wreaths Across America ceremony, they play Taps, the flag waves overhead. But you don’t need either one to know this day matters. Just observe the expressions of those around you.

While Arlington National Cemetery is the most notable of national cemeteries, it’s fascinating to volunteer on the local level, where each cemetery has its own flavor. San Diego’s Fort Rosecrans cemetery, pitched atop the Pacific Ocean, is the final resting place of 100,000. Western Reserve holds just a fraction of that, 36,000. With the cold and the heavily clouded sky, you knew in your bones that you were in Ohio in December. And that made the day all the more perfect.

By Remembering Those Lost, We Help Their Memories Live On

They announced that Gold Star families would lay wreaths first, so my dad and I hung back. We soon realized that nearly everybody there had lost a loved one in battle. One after one, the throngs kept coming. Watching hundreds of people move toward the wreaths in one big sea, you saw the sacrifice. Not just of the veterans we’ve lost. But of the families who loved them.

Remember. Honor. Teach. That’s the Wreaths Across America mission. As we tromped through the mud surrounded by Gold Star families, I couldn’t help but think of the words spoken at the afternoon ceremony: “We are here to remember not their deaths, but their lives.”

It’s a poignant reminder to live well. Love more. Be better. For their sake and ours, while we can.

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Trucker honors fallen veterans

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fallen veterans

Photo courtesy of livetrucking.com

After completing a load in New Jersey, Illinois trucker J.D. Walker continued on to Columbia Falls, Maine. He then began his journey to honor the graves of fallen veterans.  Walker participated in a program called “Wreaths Across America” that delivers wreaths to veteran cemeteries across the US.  The program started in 1992 when the owner of the Worcester Wreath Company in Harrington, ME donated 5,000 wreaths to Arlington Cemetery.  Since then the program grown in size to do the sames for over 1,200 cemeteries across the country.

After waiting for two days in Columbia Falls, Maine, Walker picked up more than 4,200 wreaths and began his task of delivering the wreaths and placing them on the graves of fallen veterans in cemeteries in Concordia, Kansas City, Liberty, Jacksonville, Eldon and Jefferson City, Missouri.  Walker told the The Herald-Whig that after losing his 21-year-old son in Iraq in 2007, he feels compelled to honor the lives of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.  He returned home on December 15, after completing his 9-day trek to deliver the wreaths.

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A Moving Day As A Wreaths Across America Volunteer

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Today marked my second consecutive year as a Wreaths Across America volunteer. Last year’s event was unlike any other tradition I experienced, and I wanted to volunteer again this year.

Today I discovered that Wreaths Across America is fast becoming one of my favorite holiday traditions. On a sunny morning in San Diego, Calif., hundreds of volunteers descended upon Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery to pay their respects to military men and women who have gone before us and place wreaths at their graves.

A sense of duty resonates deeply at a military cemetery on any morning, and even more so when thousands of people gather there to pay their respects together.

Something about seeing thousands of graves decorated with wreaths all at once is quite moving. At its core, Wreaths Across America goes beyond simply decorating graves. It resurrects the memories of millions of military servicemen and women. After all, not every grave site sees a visitor in recent years.

The individuals gain renewed prominence by receiving the honor of a wreath placed on the grave.

“Wreaths commemorate our commitment as Americans to honor the fallen,” said Joanne Murphy in her opening remarks at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. She implored volunteers to “place the wreaths and seek to learn more about these real American heroes.”

I felt gratified to volunteer again and immerse myself in a special tradition.

Placing a wreath on a grave is such a simple thing, and yet its impact is so profound.

For more great photos and video of this special Wreaths Across America ceremony, connect with Drive My Way on Facebook here.

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