Arlington Wreath Project
Arlington Wreath Project
One man's mission to honor America's heroes
American Profile, 11/25/07
By Tracy Leinberger-Leonardi
On a cold December day, a crowd of more than 1,000 volunteers—from civilians and soldiers to toddlers and senior citizens—waits quietly, solemnly at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. In the distance they hear the low rumble of a tractor-trailer filled with 5,000 wreaths as it bursts through the morning’s dense fog making its way toward them. As the trailer comes to a stop, it marks the completion of a 750-mile journey from Harrington, Maine (pop. 882), to Arlington, where volunteers prepare to honor our nation’s departed heroes by adorning their graves with wreaths.
An idea is born
The creator of the annual holiday tribute is Morrill Worcester, owner of the Worcester Wreath Co. in Harrington. In 1992, his company was constructing a second wreath factory and he knew from past experience that area artisans would stop by the construction site to offer their homemade wreaths for sale. Worcester thought he might need the extra wreaths, so he instructed his carpenters to buy any of the holiday ornaments that artisans brought by.
“I had forgotten all about it until Monday, Dec. 10, when a carpenter asked me what I wanted him to do with all the wreaths. I didn’t need them!” says Worcester, 56, with a laugh. “It was too late in the season, but they were nice, fresh wreaths, so I thought of Arlington.”
Worcester first visited Arlington National Cemetery when he was 12 years old. As a paperboy, he won a trip as part of a contest that rewarded his outstanding sales efforts. More than 40 years later, he still can recall the feeling that flooded over him when he looked out across the sea of white marble tombstones.
“The enormity of it all hit me right then,” Worcester says. “It stuck with me, just how very, very lucky we (Americans) are.”
To get things started, he called a friend, who donated a tractor-trailer to transport the wreaths, and then got the OK from officials at the cemetery to adorn the graves with the wreaths. With the help of a dozen friends, Worcester donated 5,000 wreaths that were laid on the headstones during a six-hour period in December 1992. It was the beginning of what is now known as the Arlington Wreath Project.
A growing effort
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