Dear Michael Barbour,

What is Your Why?

Here at Wreaths Across America headquarters the cool Maine air signals the end of summer as well as the end of a very busy September.

It has been an emotional and educational few weeks as we have spent time with and learned the stories of many who have lived lives of service to our Country. From our September 11 flag waving memorial, a 12-hour iHeart radiothon, the Women in Military Roundtable Discussion on Wreaths Radio, an educational summit with Law Enforcement Officers, to the dedication of the Military Women’s Memorial Grove on the tiplands this past Monday, I have been inspired by the examples set by so many women and men. 

It has become a custom at our events to ask those who participate “what is your why?”   

Without exception, each time we carry out this exercise and one-by-one, each participant gives their testimony, there are tears, compassion and a strengthened bond within our extended WAA family.

My own why grows bigger with each passing month, and new person I meet. It grew this month as I had the honor to sit next to one of my own heroes, Medal of Honor Recipient Roger Donlon and his amazing wife, Norma, at a Medal of Honor Society event in Boston on 9/11. Together,  we watched Medal of Honor Recipient Leroy Petry - whose service in Afghanistan earned him his Medal - struggle to speak of the 13 men and women who our Country just lost. 

It grew during our Law Enforcement Officer Summit as a military veteran and Officer embraced me and cried as he continues to work through his PTSD. Then again at the Grove dedication, as I listened to a 98 year-old WWII Navy Nurse recall her service with pride and end by stating she’d be proud to go again if she could. All these amazing people, continue to fuel my why.

I recently read a quote, “If American children are not taught the principles of freedom, America will not be free for long.” For me, truer words have never been spoken, and this fear is also part of my why.

Finally, to all of the devoted Wreaths Across America volunteers and supporters, it is your passion and commitment that allows us collectively, to carry out this important mission…YOU are my why… and I thank you.

With gratitude,

Karen Worcester

REMEMBER. HONOR. TEACH.

Medal of Honor Recipient Roger Donlon's Shares His Why

Recently, Wreaths Across America had the honor and privilege to sit down with Medal of Honor Recipient Roger Donlon and his wife Norma, a Gold Star Wife, at their home in Kansas, and ask - what is your why? 

The following video shares their answer and is a message that every American should take the less-than three minutes to watch, listen, learn, and share.

“Do your part, young men and women, stand up to the challenge, be brave.” 

- Col. Roger Donlon, U.S. Army (Ret.), first Medal of Honor Recipient from the Vietnam War

Dedication of the Military Women’s Memorial Grove

Monday, Sept. 27, 2021  Jonesboro, Maine, USA

“Let the generations know that women in uniform also guaranteed their freedom. That our resolve was just as great as the brave men who stood among us. And with victory, our hearts were just as full and beat just as fast – that the tears fell just as hard for those we left behind.”

- 1LT Anne Sosh Brehm, US Army Nurse Corps, World War II China Burma India Theatre

On Monday, Wreaths Across America, as part of its Veterans' Remembrance Tree Program, in partnership with the Military Women's Memorial Foundation, dedicated the Military Women's Grove on the balsam tip lands in Maine. The balsam fir trees in this Grove will now hold the replica dog tags of thousands of America's military women, in honor and memory of all women who have served our nation – past and present.

Tune In to Wreaths Across America Radio - A Voice for America’s Veterans! 

Tune in on Wednesday, Oct. 6, at 10 am to hear a special ‘Mission Matters’ featuring the ceremony from the dedication of the Military Women’s Grove, followed by a replay of the last RoundTable on Veterans’ Healing focused on Women in the Military.

The two episodes will be replayed that evening at 6 and 7 pm ET.

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