12/14/2024
Good morning everyone! Here are the details for Saturday’s Wreaths Across America Ceremony at Sky-View Memorial Park, Inc.
To all of our volunteers, scouts, sponsors, individuals, and donors:
Message for all Wreaths Across America Volunteers
Thank you for volunteering for Wreaths Across America at Sky-View Memorial Park on December 14, 2024. The 2024 WAA theme is “Live with Purpose”, and the greater Tamaqua area has done just that: we are proud to report approximately 300 volunteers have registered and 3,546 wreaths have been sponsored at Sky-View, so each volunteer will have multiple opportunities to place a wreath at a veteran’s resting place.
The event will take place regardless of weather conditions. Bathroom facilities will be available at Sky-View, and there will also be complimentary coffee and hot chocolate for volunteers.
Please continue reading for information about parking, the ceremony, and laying wreaths.
BENEFACTORS AND COMMUNITY SPONSORS
Paula and Vito Basile of Basile’s Italian Delight Restaurant and the Sky-View Memorial Park Board of Directors are the primary benefactors this year. Kistler Transportation and the Hometown Farmers Market likewise made contributions of facilities and services for this event.
Wreaths were sponsored by individuals and businesses from as far away as Missouri, and volunteers are coming from as far away as Virginia. To all benefactors, donors, volunteers, and wreath sponsors, we extend a sincere “thank you” for your generosity – we are proud to partner with you in honoring our American heroes.
PARKING
All parking for the event will be at the Hometown Farmers Market, 125 Mahanoy Avenue, Tamaqua. Volunteers will be shuttled back and forth to the cemetery by school buses, and the buses will run continually in both directions from 10:30 AM to 2:00 PM.
Handicapped Parking will be available at Sky-View only for those with a handicapped placard or plate. Parking at the cemetery is very limited.
Rush Township Police and Fire Police will be stationed in front of Sky-View to dissuade people from parking in the office lot or on the highway.
Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts and their leaders are asked to be in front of the mausoleum by 11:40 AM to receive special instructions for wreath laying.
CEREMONY
The Wreaths Across America ceremony will begin promptly at 12:00 noon and will feature
Rev. Deborah Forney, Vocalists Brayden Brothers, Bugler Thomas Graham, and members of the Tamaqua High School Chorus.
Ceremonial wreaths will be laid by Jeremiah Andrefski (Army), John Bockorick (Navy), Dennis DiCarlo (Marines), Dave Meredith (Coast Guard), Leo Rogers (Air Force), Lieut. Colonel Ivonne Charbonneau (Space Force), Ron Kuhn (POW/MIA) and several Gold Star Families.
It is expected that the ceremony will take no more than 30 minutes and will include instructions for laying wreaths.
LAYING WREATHS
No wreaths will be distributed until after the ceremony has concluded. There will be NO exceptions.
Volunteers should only take one wreath at a time. Wreaths should only be placed on graves that are marked with either a metal American flag holder or small, red surveying flag. Proper etiquette is to lay the wreath on the grave immediately underneath the name of the deceased with the bow at the 12:00 position for uniformity. It is requested that you say the name of the veteran aloud and take a moment to say any words of remembrance, prayer, or thanks.
The resting places of veterans that are demarcated with a small, neon-green surveying flag are places of distinction -- they are the resting places of the 89 war-dead and are primarily located next to the trees that line the roads in Sky-View. Family members, along with the Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts will be given the honor of laying wreaths on these veterans’ resting places.
There are also a handful of blue surveying flags throughout the cemetery. These are used by the grounds staff to identify graves that need to be re-sodded and should not necessarily receive a wreath unless the site is also marked with either an American flag holder or with a small, red surveying flag.
If you are putting a wreath at a columbarium, lay the wreath at the foot of the column in which the veteran is interred. Even if there is more than one veteran in that column, there should only be one wreath placed per column to represent them all. Likewise, if you place a wreath in the mausoleum, place it at the foot of the column in which the veteran is entombed to represent all in that column.
If you need directions to a specific veteran’s place of rest, you can get assistance from one of the cemetery staff (wearing red WAA hats) or by calling the Sky-View office at (570) 668-4100. The office will be open during the event. Note that you can also search Sky-View’s website for the section and lot of any burial in the cemetery.
PICTURES
Professional photographers, Niki Slivka Hoffman and Brenden Bugge, will be present, but you are invited to take your own pictures as well.
In addition, you are encouraged to post your pictures on social media, especially any picture that bears the names of the veterans that you have honored with a wreath.
In all aspects (including the photos), please remember to show proper respect for the day’s activities.
Thank you again for participating in Wreaths Across America at Sky-View, and we look forward to seeing you on Saturday!
We 4 WAA
