LITTLE RIVER, SC (WBTW) – On Saturday, people honored our fallen veterans at 1,600 cemeteries across the nation by placing a wreath on their graves. Wreaths Across America Day brought dozens of veterans and their families to the North Myrtle Beach Memorial Gardens.
“It makes it very surreal,” Jim McDonald, retired Lt. Commander in the Navy said about the feeling he gets when placing a wreath on a fallen veteran’s grave. “Being retired, it’s something that’s near and dear to my heart.”
Many attended the ceremony to pay their respects to those who made the ultimate sacrifice. Current members of the military say the ceremony has a big impact on veterans and their families.
“They see everybody coming here to do this, it probably helps them out, it makes them feel really good that their veterans are being honored, their family members; their loved ones are being honored,” John Brown, Public Affairs Officer with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary said.
During the ceremony, veterans placed a wreath, each representing a different branch of the military, onto a stand. They also included a wreath for the thousands of prisoners of war who never made it home.
Then volunteers placed hundreds of wreaths on the tombstones at North Myrtle Beach Memorial Gardens.
For some, the day served as a reminder of the sacrifices veterans make to ensure our freedom.
“Freedom is not free, the lives of the people that are here is the reason we’re a free country today,” McDonald said.
