About a dozen local veterans attended the event, which returned after the first installment in 2023.

This year, volunteers and veterans laid 48 wreaths on the ground-level lights at the base of the Wall, to remember fallen comrades and to live Wreaths Across America’s mission to “remember, honor and teach,” per the 501(c)(3)’s website.

Wreaths Across America is a national nonprofit that was founded by Morrill Worcester of the Worcester Wreath Company of Harrington, Maine, in 1992 after his company produced a surplus of wreaths for the holiday season, which were used to decorate veterans’ graves in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.

The annual program grew as people from around the country contacted Worcester to request wreaths for their local cemeteries, according to the Wreath’s website. In 2022, more than 2.7 million sponsored wreaths were placed at veterans’ headstones across the country.

Walmart truck drivers Allan Boardman (left) and Allan Boyd lay a large wreath at the Wall That Heals flag pole. MIrror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

This year, Dec. 14 is celebrated by the nonprofit as Wreaths Across America Day, with hundreds of wreath-laying ceremonies held in honor of veterans from various communities.

The organization hosted similar events in Everett and Bedford before heading north for the ceremony at the VA hospital.

According to Allen Boyd, a Walmart truck driver who attended the ceremony, “it’s important for everyone to understand that freedom is never free, and some of these guys gave their life … to serve this country.”

The freedoms American citizens currently enjoy are thanks to the “sacrifice” of these veterans, so we should appreciate their service, Boyd said.

“Walmart is proud to support Wreaths Across America by providing resources and volunteers to lay wreaths at veterans’ cemeteries,” Walmart general transportation manager Lori Feathers said to the small crowd gathered at the Wall.

This event was a “small way for us to express our gratitude for your sacrifice,” Feathers said.

“The wreath-laying ceremonies are a reminder of the freedoms we enjoy today, and the brave men and women who have fought to get those freedoms for us.”

Mirror Staff Writer Conner Goetz is at 814-946-7535.