URGENT Bay Pines Cemetery won't have enough wreaths unless you help

Bay Pines Cemetery struggles to put wreath on every veteran's grave

FOX 13 News
Catherine Hawley
November 29, 2018

Right now, Bay Pines is at 5 percent of its goal, meaning more than 32,000 graves won't get a wreath.

ST. PETERSBURG (FOX 13) - Each December, volunteers place hundreds of thousands of evergreen, live wreaths on the graves of veterans.

The program started at Arlington National Cemetery in 1992 and now takes place in more than 1,400 cemeteries across the country, including in the Bay Area.

For Ronalee Klase, her brother, Billy's grave couldn't be more perfect.

"I always kid, I say it’s right on the edge just where he lived life," Klase said.

Billy Klase was a Vietnam vet, a martial arts expert, and an avid skydiver. He was laid to rest at Bay Pines National Cemetery in St. Petersburg 14 years ago.

"We try to come out on the anniversary of his death and put some flowers down for him," said Klase.

She also makes sure he gets a wreath during the holiday season.

The cemetery is one of hundreds across the country taking part in Wreaths Across America. Every December, volunteers lay evergreens on the graves of our fallen soldiers, saying every name out loud.
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