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Committee approves annual 'Wreaths Across America' event, discusses cemetery logistics
Summary
The Marshfield Veterans Council requested that Wreaths Across America become an approved recurring annual event; the committee approved the recurring status and discussed operational issues including flag markers, snow removal and volunteer mapping of veteran graves.
The Park, Recreation and Forestry Committee voted Aug. 13 to authorize Wreaths Across America as a recurring annual event at the city cemetery and to allow organizers to proceed with planning, with the understanding that staff will return to the committee if operational problems arise.
Sue Sternberg, president of the Marshfield Veterans Council, told the committee the group has placed wreaths each year since 2023: about 500 wreaths in 2023, 1,500 in 2024 and a goal of 2,300 wreaths for the coming December. “This is going to be an annual event, so I don't have to come back every year,” Sternberg said, asking for recurring authorization to reduce administrative burden.
Committee members and staff discussed several operational challenges organizers experienced last winter, including frozen ground that made placing and later removing marker flags difficult, flags and marker hardware left behind after wreath removal, and the need for careful placement so snow‑removal equipment can access graves without damaging markers. Staff and volunteers also noted that cemetery mapping exists but can be hard to read in cold weather and that volunteers are not always familiar with the map or patterns used to locate graves.
The committee approved the request with a motion that included a staff check-in: if recurring operations produce problems, staff will bring the item back for review. Staff and organizers discussed possible mitigations, including scheduling marker installation and removal timing to avoid frozen-ground conditions, clearer volunteer instructions about marker placement, and improving coordination for snow removal prior to the event.
Sternberg said volunteers had placed hundreds of marker flags and that the group expects to use volunteers again; she and staff agreed to share contact information so the parks department and organizers can coordinate placement and removal work. The committee did not change cemetery policy in the vote; it authorized recurring event status subject to operational oversight and possible future review by staff and the committee.
