FORT SMITH -- The Christmas Honors program is changing its clean-up schedule to get ahead of the rain predicted for Friday.
The program honors veterans by putting wreaths on their graves at Fort Smith National Cemetery.
Philip Merry, organizer, said the wreaths will be damaged if they're wet when they're put into storage for next year. He said the program is asking for volunteers Thursdayto help gather wreaths from the cemetery at 522 Garland Ave. and take them to the Fort Smith Convention Center at 55 S. Seventh St.
The process usually takes five hours, starting at 8 a.m. Local students usually volunteer to help, but because of the date change, the program is especially in need of support, Merry said.
"We need help. It's not for us, it's for the veterans that serve us," Merry said.
On Friday, volunteers can help at the Convention Center at 8 a.m. to clean and store the wreaths.
Merry said the nonprofit group Christmas Honors started in 2009 when he went to the cemetery to pay respects to his wife's grandfather. He said the view reminded him of Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
When Merry looked up photos of the Virginia site at Christmas, he saw all the graves decorated through Wreaths Across America at Arlington, compared to thousands of graves at Fort Smith that had no decorations.
The cemetery agreed Merry could put up wreaths for the 12,000 veterans buried there at the time, and the Walmart Supercenter on Zero Street sold Merry supplies at $4 per wreath and 95 cents per big, red bow. Merry explained Christmas Honors is separate from Wreaths Across America at Arlington, which uses live greenery that is replaced each year, whereas Christmas Honors' wreaths can last roughly five years, only needing new bows due to water damage.
He said there's no way to adequately thank veterans for all they've done, but the charity can help ensure they're never forgotten.
Stephen Wright, Fort Smith VFW post commander, said this is the first year he's volunteered to set up wreaths and attended the Christmas Honors programs, adding he's been to similar events at other cemeteries. He said it means a lot to him as a prior honor guard with the Arkansas National Guard Military Funeral Honors program because he's been to several funerals where the veteran had no friends or family attend, and, in those cases, he had to present the flag to the funeral home or coroner attending.
"So in times when it seems as if veterans are continually and habitually forgotten, the Christmas Honors program revives the 'never leave a fallen comrade' or 'you're never alone' aspect of everything that the military really ingrained in me," he said.
Those who want to contribute to Christmas Honors but don't have time to volunteer or attend the program may donate money to purchase new wreaths and bows and ensure the program continues, Wright said.