Each year, volunteers fan out across the many cemeteries throughout the country to honor those who made countless sacrifices in the defense of freedom as part of Wreaths Across America.

The annual laying of the wreaths will take place on Saturday, Dec. 14, and will include over 4,000 cemeteries nationwide, as well as the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, where many who perished during the D-Day invasion were laid to rest.

Here at home, one South Williamsport resident has stepped up to make sure no area veteran is forgotten.

“I was watching the news one morning, and they were doing a plea for 2,000 wreaths that they were short at Arlington National Cemetery, and they said the quote, “a person dies twice, once when they take their last breath, and then again when there’s no one left to say their name or tell their story,” and that just really grabbed my heart, said Dori Rankinen, who recently stepped away from her position as coordinator for the annual Mummer’s Parade in order to take a larger role in Wreaths Across America.

“We’ve grown from four communities to 30. Our smallest cemetery is the Kurtz family plot in Eldridge Township which as one Revolutionary soldier, and our largest is Wildwood, where close to 5,700 veterans are buried,” said Rankinen, who started her work with the organization six years ago and now acts as the unofficial the coordinator of Wreaths Across America, Central Pennsylvania, which is made up of a core committee of just eight people.

Rankinen’s consortium includes Sullivan and Lycoming counties, with Watsontown and Turbotville added to the roster within the past couple years.

Nationally, the organization is based out of Columbia Falls, Maine, where the wreaths are sourced from, according to Rankinen.

The initiative dates back to 1992 when Worcester Wreath Company founder Morrill Worcester, having a surplus of wreaths during the holiday season, decided to donate his extra supply to Arlington National Cemetery, making arrangements himself to have them delivered to the cemetery.

“Each wreath costs $17, and is made of the tips of balsam fir trees. They lay three of them together, and there are 10 of those bouquets, each representing an attribute or characteristic of a veteran,” Rankinen explained.

These special qualities include the soldiers’: belief in a greater good; love for each other; strength, work ethic and character; honesty and integrity; humility; ambitions and aspirations; optimism for America; concern for the future; pride in their duties; and hopes and dreams that didn’t always come true, but left them with no regrets.

As part of the wreath laying ceremony, the person placing the wreath on the soldier’s grave must say their name out loud and thank them for their service, Rankinen explained, tying it back to the need for them never to be forgotten.

The farm also features The Remembrance Forest, where people that lose someone in the military can make a replica of their loved one’s dog tags, and hang them in the trees, where they will always remain, Rankinen said.

“We typically have high school students from the band who play Taps or The National Anthem and someone from the chorus to sing The National Anthem or God bless America,” Rankinen said.

“One year, the young lady we had lined up to do The National Anthem got the flu, so we ended up having to do it like an old school hockey game style, where the crowd sang it, and it gave you chills,” she continued.

A 501 3C, much of the work of the organization is carried out by dedicated volunteers, according to Rankinen.

“I was trying to find a way to make a holder for the cemeteries because if it’s windy, you can’t use the typical wire wreath holder, so Matt Deming and Barney Kahn from the Penn College carpentry department offered to make them for me,” she said.

“We had a young man take wreaths on both arms and walk up and down in a grid pattern, making sure that no one was forgotten. A basketball team from South Side called and said, ‘we don’t have a cemetery, but we’d like to come and help,’ she said.

“It was raining, but those kids stayed until it was time to fold up the boxes the wreaths come in. I mean, people just really step up,” she said.

Much of the funding for the organization’s local participants come from fundraising efforts ranging from soup and bake sales to bigger events such as gun bingos and the support of local partners.

Individual donations are accepted in a number of ways, including through their website and Venmo.

“There’s some people that don’t like to do it online and I understand that. I will come and pick up a check,” Rankinen said.

Additionally, there is a matching donation window from Dec. 14 to Jan 14, where anonymous donors will match every dollar brought in during that period, Rankinen said.

As for what keeps Rankinen and all of the volunteers of Wreaths Across America motivated, it comes down to acknowledging the tremendous work of America’s armed forces.

“I can’t run up a hillside with an 85 pound rucksack. I also can’t be awakened at 2:30 in the morning and be expected to be cognizant enough to defend a border. And most of all, I like a good cup of coffee in the morning. And most times, our military people don’t have that luxury,” she said.

“This is something I can do, and something anyone can do, just show up that day, say their name out loud and honor them,” Rankinen said.

For more information on getting involved or making a donation, please visit Wreaths Across America, Central PA on Facebook or the Wreaths Across America website to find the nearest participating cemetery.