Wreathed with glory and good intentions at Arlington

SHARON — The national Wreaths Across America observance this year was held on Saturday, Dec. 17. Americans are invited on that day to put a holiday wreath on a veteran’s tombstone at any cemetery that is near to them or where a loved one who was a veteran is buried. 

Colleen and Rick Kopec decided to go all the way to Arlington, Va., for this year’s ceremony. They live in Sharon, but Colleen Kopec has her business in Lake-ville (Skintastic, which will close at the end of January; look for a profile of the shop and Kopec in the Jan. 7 Lakeville Journal). Rick Kopec works from home in Sharon, where he publishes an online magazine about Shelby Cobra automobiles.  

Rick Kopec is a decorated veteran of the U.S. Army (1st Cavalry Unit), who  was awarded two Purple Hearts, two Bronze Stars and two Silver Stars for his service in Vietnam.

“He volunteered, he wasn’t drafted,” his wife said. “And he actually had a positive experience in the military.”

The first wreath event at Arlington was in 1992. According to the Wreaths Across America website, a man named Morrill Worcester, owner of the Morrill Wreath Co. in Maine, had a surplus of wreaths at the end of the holiday sales season. He had visited Arlington Cemetery when he was 12 years old, and it had made a huge impression on him. He decided to send his extra wreaths to the cemetery, so they could adorn the graves there. The oldest graves were given first priority because they were getting the fewest visitors.

Over the years, other groups stepped in to help, including a trucking company in Maine that transported the greens from New England to Virginia. 

The wreath project got a huge boost in attention in 2005,when someone posted a photo on the Internet. 

Now, Colleen Kopec said, “Thirty tractor trailors full of wreaths travel to Arlington for Wreaths Across America day.” In addition, individuals across the country take part at other cemeteries. 

The Kopecs decided to participate this year, and to not only travel to Arlington to help place the wreaths but also to sponsor 10 wreaths.

“While we were at The Wall, a volunteer approached Rick and pinned a medal commemorating 50 years since the start of the Vietnam War,” Colleen reported. “That was very special and touching.”

This year, she said, 70,000 volunteers placed 241,000 wreaths and 65 tractor trailers convoyed from Maine to Virginia.

To learn more, go online to www.wreathsacrossamerica.org, or stop by Skintastic in Lakeville and chat with Colleen if she isn’t busy.