Volunteers needed to place wreaths on veterans' graves

With the Christmas holidays closing in, a Gulf Coast organization is seeking volunteers to help place several thousand wreaths on the graves of veterans.

The Wreaths for National Cemetery group, which operates under the nonprofit Crusaders for Veterans, will be placing artificial wreaths on headstones at the National Cemetery in Biloxi during a ceremony at 11 a.m. Dec. 5.

"The holidays can be a very difficult time for a lot of people that have lost loved ones," she said. "This allows them an opportunity to do something to pay tribute to their sacrifices."

The group has been placing wreaths on the first Saturday in December for three years.

"We got together three years ago and wanted to do something for the veterans at the National Cemetery for the holidays," said event organizer Veronica Romano of Riemann Family Funeral Homes, "so we started raising money and started placing artificial wreaths out there during the Christmas season."

The group raises money throughout the year, Romano said, and this year Keesler Air Force Base donated more than 1,000 wreaths.

"Last year we had about 4,400 wreaths and this year we are planning to have about 8,000," she said. "We had about 600 volunteers last year and we are hoping to have even more this year."

Romano said the wreaths stay in the cemetery for a month, then they're stored by Harrison County until the next holiday season.

Volunteers are asked to simply show up to the ceremony.

"Anyone that shows up at the National Cemetery on the first Saturday in December can help place wreaths," she said. "We will allow people who have family members buried there to place the first wreaths."

For more information on the ceremony or to make a monetary donation, call Romano at 539-9800.

This story was originally published November 22, 2015 at 8:14 PM with the headline "Volunteers needed to place wreaths on veterans' graves ."