Dec. 19 was a very special day in Biddeford. Over 3,000 wreaths were placed on gravesites all over the city by volunteers who paid their respects to the veterans buried there.
The support of the community in general made for a “feel good” day to wrap up a year that was anything but.
I want to thank everyone who got involved.
• Brown Dog Carriers and owner Graig Morin, who committed to be the lead sponsor.
• The St. Joseph Knights of Columbus for locating gravesites with survey flags and the Rotary Club of Biddeford and Saco for “manning” each depot at St. Joseph Cemetery for wreath distribution.
• The Landry/French Construction team at St. Mary’s and Greenwood cemeteries, the folks at St. Demetrios, the bugle and bagpipe players, the cleanup crew and the gatekeepers monitoring traffic in and out of each location.
• The truck drivers who went to Columbia Falls to pick up the wreaths and split the trailer load into smaller loads to go to National Cemeteries in Bourne, Massachusetts, and Arlington, Virginia.
• The Scout Packs who were involved in the flag-lowering ceremonies.
• The veterans’ groups, our go-to people to make sure it was all done with respect.
• Bruce Audie and his crew, who recorded the event on video, along with Tammy Wells of the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier and WMTW-TV Channel 8 for their coverage.
• The city of Biddeford, for the use of traffic cones and other equipment, snowplowing and the recycling of all the empty cardboard boxes used to carry the wreaths.
• The folks at Woodlawn Cemetery, who coordinated with the Biddeford Fire Department and the local Boy Scouts. The crews at each cemetery were so helpful, considering the snow we had to deal with.
• The sponsors of the event, who gave major donations, paid for expenses and bought a number of wreaths, especially individual wreaths to honor their family members who served.
• Special thanks to Volk Packaging for accommodating us at their Heroes’ Wall.
• Dana Peck of the Biddeford Historical Society, who got wreaths to the often-forgotten 13 family “Ancient” cemeteries in Biddeford.
• Coastline Property Maintenance, for the use of their vehicles to haul wreaths and plow snow.
• The Maine Professional Drivers Association, for the use of their equipment.
And most of all, thank you to our veterans for their service and sacrifice to our country, making it possible for us to enjoy our lives in the manner we have become accustomed to.
Denis Litalien
member, Team Wreaths
Biddeford
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