GREENFIELD — For the first time, Franklin County’s chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution joined in a nationwide ceremony on Saturday, honoring service members by placing wreaths on their graves.
“Wreaths Across America’s mission is to remember the fallen, honor those who serve and teach the next generation the value of freedom,” said Carol O’Kulsky, treasurer and Wreaths Across America coordinator for the Greenfield chapter of Daughters of the American Revolution, called the Contentment Chapter.
Since 1992, Wreaths Across America has invited people to honor veterans buried in their local cemeteries. This year, more than 5,598 ceremonies were held in all 50 states and in 26 American cemeteries overseas, and more than 3.1 million wreaths were placed on veterans’ graves. Among the veterans honored were a handful buried at Greenfield’s High Street Cemetery.
O’Kulsky said the Greenfield chapter had “adopted” the cemetery in recent years and members have spent hours cleaning the graves. Sponsoring a wreath dedication ceremony was the “natural next step” for the local chapter and is something that members intend to make a yearly tradition.
“It’s the oldest official cemetery in Greenfield and there’s 17 Revolutionary War patriots buried here,” O’Kulsky said.
Chapter Regent Katherine Maleno added that the Daughters of the American Revolution works to follow the directives outlined in George Washington’s farewell address, which calls for education, historic preservation and patriotism. The wreath dedication is a way to meet those directives while remembering and honoring those who fought to build this nation, as well as those who fought to protect it.
“The freedoms we enjoy today have come at a cost. Lying here before us and in cemeteries across the nation are men and women who sacrificed their lives so we can live in freedom and without fear,” Maleno said. “We can worship as we choose. We can raise our children to believe as we do. We are free to vote for the leaders of our choosing. And, we have the right to succeed and the right to fail in any endeavor we pursue.
“We will not forget you. We will remember.”
Katherine Maleno,
Contentment Chapter Regent
“The United States of America was founded on the ideals of freedom, equality, justice and humanity,” Maleno continued. “Our nation stands as a shining beacon of liberty and freedom to the world. We thank those who gave their lives to keep us free, and we will not forget you. We will remember.”
