September issue - a day late! Things have been busy in the Wreaths Across America office and around the Nation as many volunteers are making plans for the December wreath-laying events.

This month we are sharing a couple treats from the Wreaths Across America Recipe Book; updates on pending locations; and a special story from last years event at Arlington.

And if you haven't been to the website in awhile - you will see a big change on the list of locations. We have created a page for EVERY PARTICIPATING LOCATION (over 230!) where you can find pertinent details, contact other volunteers, share pictures, thoughts and reflections. The new submission pages were just made available in September. With time each location will become almost a website within the Wreaths Across America.org site.

Hope you will share your thoughts and suggestions for other similar content we can work into the Wreaths Across America website. Enjoy!

Volunteers Wanted!
See Our List of Pending Locations

We do however need some help with the following locations. Due to changes in contact information - we've lost contact with the following locations. If you, or someone you know would like to get involved, we are looking for Location Leaders at the following state and national cemeteries:

San Francisco National Cemetery, CA
Ft Lyon National Cemetery, CO
Col Raymond Gates Memorial Cemetery, CT
Spring Grove Veterans' Cemetery, CT
Iowa Veterans' Home & Cemetery, IA
Ft Scott National Cemetery, KS
Cave Hill National Cemetery, KY
Zachary Taylor National Cemetery, KY
Kentucky Veterans' Cemetery North, KY
Port Hudson National Cemetery, LA
Minnesota State Veterans' Cemetery, MN
Springfield National Cemetery, MO
State Veterans' Cemetery in Higginsville, MO
Finn's National Cemetery, NJ
Santa Fe National Cemetery, NM
Calverton National Cemetery, NY
St Matthew's Cemetery, W. Seneca, NY
North Nevada Veterans' Memorial Cemetery, NV
Veterans Park, Winnemucca, NV
West Carolina State Veterans Cemetery, NC
Mocksville Veterans' Memorial, NC
Ohio Veterans Home Cemetery, OH
Black Hills National Cemetery,SD
Fort Meade National Cemetery, SD
South Dakota Veterans' Home Cemetery, SD
Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery,TX
Houston National Cemetery, TX
San Antonio National Cemetery, TX
Vermont Veterans' Memorial Cemetery, VA
City Point National Cemetery, VA
Cold Harbor National Cemetery, VA
Glendale National Cemetery, VA
Hampton National Cemetery, VA
Hampton National Cemetery, VAMC, VA
Shenandoah Memorial Park, Winchester,VA
Panorama Memorial Gardens, Strasburg, VA
Oregon Trail Veterans Cemetery, WY

If you would like to get involved at one of these locations, please drop an email to Maj. Dennis Murray at Wreaths Across America HQ

Teasers from the
Wreaths Across America Recipe Book!

Fettuccini with Shrimp, Bacon and Goat Cheese
Ingredients
1 lb. box/bag of fettuccini
1 bag fresh spinach
6 pieces thick-cut bacon, cut into small pieces and sautéed
1 bag precooked and thawed shrimp, approx 31-40 count
1/4 lb fresh goat cheese, crumbled
1 c. cherry tomatoes cut in half
1/4 c. toasted pine nuts
1 garlic clove crushed
3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
coarse salt and pepper

Method
Cook pasta according to package directions until Al Dente, reserving 1/4 cup of pasta liquid. -Toast pine nuts in a large deep sauce pan over medium heat until browned. Do not add any fat to the pan. Remove the nuts; sauté, bacon finely diced in the same pan until medium crispness is achieved. Add garlic during last minute of sautéing. Drain on paper towels. Wipe bacon fat out of pan, do not wash. Add spinach to pan toss until wilted. Add cherry tomatoes, bacon and nuts and thawed shrimp to heat through. Toss with olive oil. Add pasta, and pasta liquid toss all. Sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Serve topped with goat cheese crumbles and garlic bread.

Submitted by: Betsy Jones - Alexandria, VA

Sounds so good, I wish we had pictures!

And your bonus recipe (we couldn't choose just one)...

Pasta Puttanesca
Ingredients
1 lb. thin spaghetti
1 28 oz. can chopped tomatoes
1 can black olives, pitted, and chopped
1 can flat anchovies. (2 cans if you really love anchovies)
_ c. of capers
1 c. chopped onion
3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped
3 Tbsp. olive oil
_ tsp. crushed red pepper (more if you like heat)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
salt & pepper to taste. (Not much salt needed. The anchovies are salty enough)
6 c. of water

Method
In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion & garlic. Sauté until onion is soft, about 3-5 minutes. Be careful the garlic does not burn. Add anchovies and blend in by mashing them with a fork or wooden spoon. Add tomatoes, capers, oregano, basil, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper to taste. Stir and let simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, Put water in a pot over high heat and bring to a boil.

Add spaghetti and cook for about 7 minutes. Drain spaghetti from pot. If your skillet is large enough, add spaghetti to the sauce and stir to coat. Otherwise, return spaghetti to pot, pour sauce over it, and stir to coat. Serve up and enjoy!
Submitted by: Carlo Letizio - Staten Island, NY

Thanks Betsy and Carlo!

Wayne shares a poignant recollection from last year's event at Arlington National Cemetery - one of those moments that few people see, but one that captures the spirit of the whole wreath-laying project in such a unique way.

Over the years, we have saved many amazing memories from the wreath-laying ceremonies at Arlington. With the new location pages and opportunity to submit, we hope that we will be able to record many more such occasions, from locations all around the Country.

Read Wayne and Ann's story below (in italics) as it was shared with us. I think you will enjoy this.

Until next time.

Tobin Slaven
Wreaths Across America Staff Writer

“Someone Guided Us Here Today”

The hundreds of volunteers had long since faded away but the sun continued to brighten the afternoon blue sky over the well maintained grounds of Arlington National Cemetery. It was December 14, 2006. Over 5,000 Holiday wreaths donated by the Worcester Wreath Company had just been placed on an equal number of headstones located in Sections 3 and 11of the cemetery marking the final resting places of fallen American heroes and their family members. But there was still work to be done by a few members of the Maine State Society of Washington, DC.

As part of a related project of individual remembrance, cadets from the Maine Civil Air Patrol (CAP), who had come down from Maine to help place the Holiday wreaths, also had a list of 35 specific grave sites located throughout the cemetery which they had hoped to locate, place a wreath, and take a photograph. However, even with identifying data, due to the size of the area of the cemetery to cover and over 300,000 sites to search through, the cadets had to leave before completing their list. My wife Ann and I, along with Society member Dave Moulton, agreed to stay around to locate, place a wreath, and photograph about 15 grave sites of individuals remaining on a sheet of names.

It was getting late afternoon. We still had a few graves to locate, but we three were getting somewhat weary from being at the cemetery since about 5:30a.m. that morning. My wife and I said we could come back the next day to complete the list. My wife has an uncle buried in Section 59 of the cemetery and we have routinely placed a wreath on his grave each year. Section 59 would be on the way out of the cemetery so we decided to stop and place his wreath. After putting the wreath on his grave and saying a brief prayer, we returned to our car expecting to leave for the day.

My wife looked at the CAP listing a final time and noticed that one of those remaining on the list was in Section 60, which was just a block away from where we were. Although we were all tired, we said, “OK, Let’s locate this last one before we go.” We drove to Section 60, Ann got out, took a wreath from the trunk, and began walking among the rows of headstones looking for the marker for David Veverka. I followed her with the camera to take a picture.

Section 60 is also the location at Arlington where many of the service members killed in action in our current war against terrorism are being buried. As Ann walked ahead between the headstones looking for Veverka’s stone, a lady dressed in a white uniform and cape from either a VFW or American Legion Auxiliary Unit approached her. This lady asked my wife if she was from Worcester Wreath Company. Ann explained that she was with the Maine State Society helping to place the wreaths donated by Worcester Wreath Company that day. The lady then pointed and waved to a young woman who had been sitting in a nearby car. The lady explained that the young woman, we later learned her name was Lisa Doring, had been waiting all day at the grave of her husband, Nathanael J. Doring, a Marine Captain who had been killed in action in May 2006.

According to the lady in white, Lisa had waited all day “knowing that someone from Worcester Wreath Company would be by to place a wreath on her husband’s headstone.” Apparently Lisa had heard of the wreath project but erroneously thought wreaths would be placed on all the graves in Section 60 that day and she was not going to leave and miss it.

Even though Captain Doring’s grave was not the one she was looking for, my wife said she would place the wreath she carried on Captain Doring’s headstone. As she did, Lisa came forward and spoke to my wife and I thanking us for the wreath. We expressed our sorrow for her loss and shared a brief moment of silence together. We took a photograph of Lisa kneeling next to her husband’s headstone flanked with fresh flowers and the beautiful balsam Holiday wreath from Worcester Wreath Company, and promised to send her a copy, which we did the next day.

As Ann and I walked back to our car, both of us holding back the tear welding up in our eyes and our hearts pounding with pride, Ann said softly, “I know Someone guided us here today,” followed by “This just made my Christmas.”

May God Bless America and All Those Who Serve.

Wayne and Ann Hanson
Maine State Society of Washington DC