CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Giving is the reason for the season, and no one is more familiar with giving than those that gave their lives for our country.
Local musician, army veteran and veterans' rights activist Ram Chavez joined us on Domingo Live to invite the community to the Coastal Bend State Veterans Cemetery for a special holiday tradition.
For several years now, volunteers have made an organized effort to honor and remember the Coastal Bend's fallen veterans during the holidays by laying wreaths at their graves in a movement called "Wreaths Across America."
The wreaths are made and collected throughout the year, and come December, the volunteers gather them up and ceremoniously place them at each veteran's grave at the state cemetery.
This year's "Wreaths Across America" Ceremony on Dec. 16 will see the Coastal Bend State Veterans Cemetery carpeted with a total of 6,000 wreaths: enough to guarantee that not a single fallen veteran is forgotten.
A formal ceremony commemorating the veterans will also take place on Dec. 16 at 11 a.m. Members of the community are welcome to witness the ceremony and honor the veterans at no charge.
Parking on cemetery grounds will be limited due to an expansion project taking place on the day of the ceremony. Attendees are advised to take advantage of the cemetery's complimentary park-and-ride shuttle service that will take passengers to the grounds and back every 15 minutes from the following nearby locations:
- Tuloso-Midway Primary School parking lot (3125 Deer Run)
- Corpus Christi Cross Field (10002 Up River Road)
- Arlington Heights Church of Christ parking lot (2722 Rand Morgan Road)
Further information about the "Wreaths Across America Ceremony" can be found by calling the Coastal Bend State Veterans Cemetery at (361)248-4830 or by visiting the cemetery's official website.