Community Corner

Volunteers Needed Friday at 9 a.m. at Saratoga's Madronia Cemetery

Help mark graves for a Saturday Wreaths Across America ceremony honoring veterans.

Volunteers are needed Friday morning to help mark graves at Madronia Cemetery in Saratoga for Saturday’s Wreaths Across America event.

Those interested and available should be at the cemetery at 14766 Oak St. at 9 a.m. and meet in the old section. If they get enough volunteers, marking the graves will take about 90 minutes.

The markers are needed to help volunteers place wreaths on veterans' graves in a nationally coordinated ceremony honoring veterans on Saturday.

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The ceremony, which begins at 9 a.m. PST, takes place at the same time all across the country, about 300 locations, and is centered around the main ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC, says Bill Snider, organizer of the only South Bay ceremony.

“About one in five graves,” or “just over 1,000” of the graves at Madronia belong to veterans, Snider says.

Find out what's happening in Saratogawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“Some date back as far as the Civil War. The majority of course are from World War II.”

It’s the fourth year Snider has organized this effort for Wreaths Across America, a nonprofit group which says it’s mission is simple, to “remember”, “honor”, and “teach”.


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