At Miramar National Cemetery in San Diego, 160 volunteers distributed 2,000 flowers.
A floral industry-led initiative to honor fallen service members on Memorial Day and offer comfort to their families provided thousands of flowers at more than 40 cemeteries across the country this week.
Established seven years ago, the Memorial Day Flowers Foundation works with local organizers and volunteers to place flowers on gravesites at national, veterans, and local cemeteries. Through its first outreach in 2011, the group coordinated the donation of 10,000 stems at Arlington National Cemetery, outside of Washington, D.C. This year, the foundation coordinated 210,000 flowers at Arlington and 250,000 stems at 41 other U.S. cemeteries — a feat director Ramiro Peñaherrera credits to support from flower growers in the U.S. and abroad, wholesalers, transportation companies and an expanding roster of sponsors and community groups.
“It’s grown so much,” Peñaherrera said. “People are amazingly grateful.”
A young girl reflects at Miramar National Cemetery in San Diego. “I honestly don’t ever see myself doing anything else on Memorial Day,” said Mike Mooney of Dramm & Echter, who helped organize the event.
This year, the group also recruited 130 retailers — including barber shops and pet stores — to help hand out flowers to families and friends who wanted to honor a loved one. As in past years, Peñaherrera said this year’s effort was supported by CalFlowers, the California Association of Flower Growers & Shippers, Asocolflores, the government of Ecuador and dozens of industry partners. Also present at many of the events: Boy Scouts, who showed up in scores to volunteer and participate in the day’s events.
In California, 160 volunteers placed 27,000 roses on headstones at the San Francisco National Cemetery and an additional 2,000 stems at the nearby Gate of Heaven cemetery, said Michael LoBue, CEO of CalFlowers.
LoBue said momentum and support are growing locally: This year, Recology, a municipal waste and recycling company, signed on as the event’s local sponsor, providing for the flowers and organizing volunteers. The event included a 1,500-person ceremony with VIP guests and speakers, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Mark Farrell.
The Memorial Day Flowers Foundation organized 210,000 flowers at Arlington National Cemetery this week and nearly 250,000 stems at 41 other U.S. cemeteries — a feat director Ramiro Peñaherrera credits to support from flower growers in the U.S. and abroad, wholesalers, community groups and a growing roster of corporate sponsors
“It was a postcard kind of day with perfect weather,” LoBue said, noting that other major companies in Silicon Valley — Google, LinkedIn and Cisco — also sent volunteers. “I think we’ll be able to gain even more support in the future.”
At Miramar National Cemetery in San Diego, Mike Mooney, general manager of Dramm & Echter in Encinitas, California, said he’s been amazed by the “evolution of the event.”
In 2016, Mooney, a member of the Memorial Day Flower Foundation’s advisory board and the Society of American Florists’ board of directors, traveled to Arlington for the outreach. For the past two years, Mooney has helped organize the San Diego effort, which this year coordinated 17,000 stems through wholesalers and growers. About 160 volunteers, including employees from Wells Fargo and The Hyatt Group, helped distribute the flowers, up from 100 last year.
For the second year, volunteers, including a strong showing of about 40 Boy Scouts, also distributed flowers at Jacksonville National Cemetery in Florida.
“It’s a really moving event,” said Mooney. “I honestly don’t ever see myself doing anything else on Memorial Day. We used to go the beach. Now, my kids want to be here. They were up and ready to arrive at 5:45 a.m. It’s meaningful to see the families and how much they appreciate the flowers.”
CalFlowers President Ben Dobbe, chief operating officer and senior sales executive with Holland America Flowers, likewise said he was “honored” to be part of the outreach. For the past three years, his company has donated bouquets to the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, which provides support to families of fallen service members. This year, the company provided 700 bouquets.
“We’re proud to be a small part of this program and ready to do it again next year,” Dobbe said.
For the second year, Renato Sogueco, vice president of digital strategy and education at BloomNet, organized efforts at the Jacksonville National Cemetery in Florida. This year, 40 Boy Scouts distributed 6,000 roses, up from 3,000 last year. The increase allowed the group to place “a substantial number of roses” in every section of the cemetery this year — and visitors noticed.
“We had a lot of people coming up and asking us what we were doing,” said Sogueco, who became involved with the effort at Arlington National Cemetery while working at SAF. “The goal is to help people remember the true meaning of Memorial Day, to honor people who have given their lives for our country. That meaning sometimes gets lost, and people see it as just another day off from work. I think this effort is growing.”
Read more about the history of the Memorial Day Flowers Foundation. Visit their Facebook page for more information on this year’s event, including news clips generated from events around the country.