Wisconsinites pay tribute to fallen veterans with remembrance wreaths
For their two high school classmates who were killed in Vietnam.
For the servicemen and women he met in the Air Force who never made it home.
For the ones who have no loved ones left to honor them.
Every winter, husband and wife Dale and Patti Bisson lead the effort of laying fresh Maine balsam wreaths on veterans’ graves in the Village of Ingram Cemetery and beyond.
“I felt it was important that the veterans that are gone should be honored at Christmastime because some of those veterans, like our classmates, never got to see many Christmases,” said Patti Bisson, a graduate of Flambeau High School.
The Bissons volunteer with Wreaths Across America, a nonprofit that works to continue and expand the annual wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.
The organization – founded in 2007 – coordinates wreath-laying ceremonies in December at thousands of veterans cemeteries and locations, including Ingram’s, according to a news release.
Preparation stretches far beyond the month of December, however, with July being an especially important time for the people nationwide who partner with the organization, like the Bissons.
How you can help
During the month of July, when someone sponsors a $15 wreath under a specific group through Wreaths Across America, that group gets back $5.
The groups the Bissons work with – mainly Ladysmith’s Veterans Memorial Association and AMVETS Post 127 – invest those funds right back into wreaths for the upcoming year.
Wreaths Across America has given back nearly $15 million in “local contributions” in 13 years, the news release said. “Our Group Sponsorship Program is a year-round effort, but through Giving in July we hope to remind people that veterans and our current military serve and protect us 365 days a year and it is never too early to make a difference in your own community,” Karen Worcester, Wreaths Across America executive director, said in the news release.
Expanding in Rusk County
After Patti saw wreaths being laid on veterans’ graves on TV, it became a “dream” of hers to do that in her area. When she was researching how to make that happen, she found Wreaths Across America.
Dale spent six years in the Air Force and 24 years with the Army National Guard. His five brothers and Patti’s two brothers also served. “That’s why it kind of hits home for me, seeing a lot of people that did things and went places, and some didn’t return,” he said.
In 2018, the first year the Bissons worked with the organization, wreaths were placed on all 60 veterans’ graves in the Village of Ingram Cemetery.
“It’s just kind of been blossoming ever since,” Patti said.
The Bissons, who have been married 50 years, have also been helping surrounding areas get involved. Last year, they worked with locals Don and Dawn Nicholson to get wreaths for half the about 820 veterans’ graves at Ladysmith’s Riverside Cemetery.
This year, the Rusk County crew has ordered 1,020 wreaths through Wreaths Across America to cover the Ingram and Riverside cemeteries, along with a handful of smaller ones. They’re also working with local Judi Novak to get wreaths placed at the Tony Cemetery.
The group had to purchase only 510 of those wreaths since Wreaths Across America did a buy-one, get-one promotion earlier this year.
“It’s just a good feeling that you’re doing something for somebody that’s gone and don’t have the opportunities that we do,” Dale said.
Before the wreaths are placed, a ceremony is held with the honor guard, a rifle volley, speakers and a prayer. Seven ceremonial wreaths are laid, one for each military branch and one for POW/MIAs, Dale said.
After individuals lay wreaths on their loved ones’ graves, the Bissons and volunteers from AMVETS and other community groups lay the rest.
“It’s quite a sight, seeing all those wreaths laying on top of the snow,” Dale said.
“It brings tears to my eyes every time I talk about Wreaths Across America,” Patti said. “It’s just something special we can do for our veterans.”
More than 2,500 cemeteries are planning to participate in National Wreaths Across America Day this year, which is on Dec. 18.
Some other participating Wisconsin organizations and cemeteries include:
• Civil Air Patrol: Milwaukee Composite Squad No. 5, which helps sponsor wreaths at Wood National Cemetery in Milwaukee.
• Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War: Henry Harnden Camp 2, which helps sponsor wreaths at Forest Hill Cemetery in Madison.
• Independence’s American Legion Post 186, which helps sponsor wreaths at Saint Peter and Paul Cemetery in Independence.
• Fay-Robinson Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution, which helps sponsor wreaths at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery in Reedsburg.
• For more information or to sponsor a wreath, visit wreathsacrossamerica.org.