Before moving to Powell eight years ago, Ruth Ross lived in northern Virginia, where she first got involved with the national organization Wreaths Across America. 

The sight of hundreds of volunteers laying wreaths on the vast sea of graves at Arlington National Cemetery stirred her into action. 

“It’s a beautiful thing,” she said. “You know, it’s good that people still want to remember the sacrifices that the veterans made, and that’s why it’s important to me.”

So, when she arrived in Powell, she transferred her American legion Auxiliary membership to the local chapter and began asking about Wreaths Across America. When she was told it wasn’t something the Legion did — although they would lay a wreath on the grave of any veteran if asked — she and her brother began running the program locally. 

One of the first tasks was determining just how many veterans were in Crown Hill Cemetery. 

“Through a lot of walking the cemetery, working with [cemetery district clerk] Rachel [Bidon] out there at the cemetery, working with the Boy Scouts and Civil Air Patrol and people who supported it in the past, we are now up to over 700 names,” Ross said. “And it wasn’t that that many have been buried there since we started taking this project on, but it’s that we were able to identify them.”

In fact, records show 715 veteran graves at Crown Hill, which is up 10 from last year. 

“We try to keep that veterans’ list as current as we possibly can,” she said. “And in doing that research and building our database, there are some Spanish-American War veterans in Crown Hill, which is amazing … There are quite a few World War I and many, many World War II vets, and some of those, their families don’t live here anymore, or you know they’ve all passed on as well. So it’s good that somebody else can remember them.”

Last year, through help from nonprofits and a two-for-one special, the Legion Auxiliary received enough funding to place a wreath on each of those graves. This year, the funding they’ve received so far will cover less than 200, so Ross is asking for support. 

She’s also worked to dispel concerns that popped up last year about the Maine company that supplies the wreaths, which is tied to the founder of the organization. 

Ross said nothing untoward has been proven and after Wreaths Across America put out a bid for supplying the many thousands of wreaths needed to populate over 9,000 participating cemeteries, no other company could meet the requirements. 

Beyond that, Ross said it’s important for her to help place wreaths on as many graves as possible as a way to remember those who served. 

“The theme this year is ‘Remember Me.’ So, we do want to remember our veterans that have passed on,” she said. “It’s a really sad thing when people go to decorate their own family graves in the cemetery, and veterans aren’t remembered, veterans aren’t recognized. And when people walk into a cemetery now in today’s world, and they see one of those green balsam fir wreaths with the red bow on it, they know it’s a Wreaths Across America wreath, and it’s important to people to see that and know that they haven’t been forgotten.”

National Wreaths Across America Day 2025 is Saturday, Dec. 19. Wreaths are $17 each and are live balsam fir with a red ribbon. The deadline for ordering for delivery this year is Nov. 30.

To sponsor one or more wreaths through the group to be placed on veterans’ graves, go to wreathsacrossamerica.org/WY0039P. Your donation can be grave specific or for any veteran at Crown Hill Cemetery.

For more information, contact Ruth at 703-881-8813 or Marilyn at 916-952-4840.