December 14, 2024 Ceremony
Wreaths Across America
​Chestnut Grove Cemetery


Wreaths Across America
Thank you for registering to attend Chestnut Grove Cemetery's Wreaths Across America ceremony at noon on Saturday, December 14, 2024, as we REMEMBER our fallen U.S. Veterans, HONOR those serve, and TEACH our children the value of freedom. Following a brief ceremony, we invite you to join us in placing wreaths on the graves of more than 980 U.S. veterans buried at Chestnut Grove.
As we near December 14, please read carefully!  If you registered for a group of attendees, share this information with all members of your group so they are prepared for the event.
  • Cemetery/Ceremony Location – The cemetery is located at 831 Dranesville Road in Herndon, VA. Please enter the cemetery from the Dranesville Road entrance. To improve traffic flow and safety, the Herndon Parkway entrance will be closed until the ceremony and wreath laying have ended. The ceremony will be held on the hillside opposite the cemetery office, at the back of the cemetery to the right of the cemetery entrance road.
  • Crowds – At last check, more than 1000 people had registered to attend the event, so please plan accordingly.  Allow plenty of time for parking and walking to the ceremony location.
  • COVID/Flu Precautions – If you are feeling ill (fever, coughing, difficulty breathing, chills, or other flu-like symptoms) or have tested positive for COVID in the last 10 days, please take care of yourself and stay home this year. We wish you a speedy recovery and hope to see you in 2025!
  • Parking –Parking at the cemetery is limited, so PLEASE CARPOOL! When parking at the cemetery fills up, overflow parking is available at Herndon United Methodist Church (701 Bennett Street), which is across Dranesville Road from the cemetery (directly across Bennett Street from Herndon High School). Be careful when crossing Dranesville Road.  Please use the crosswalk at Bennett Street.
  • Parking within the cemetery will be controlled. You will be directed where to park by members of the Fairfax County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). For safety reasons, follow all directions of the parking team and be aware of pedestrians. Because of the  pedestrian traffic expected throughout the duration of the event, we respectfully request that all who park at the cemetery stay until the end of the event when you will be safely directed to exit the cemetery. Note that you will be parked single file on the narrow roads throughout the cemetery.  You will most likely need to wait until those in front of you have left to exit. If you think you need to leave early, park in the overflow area at the Church so that you can leave when you wish.
  • Following the ceremony and wreath laying, the CERT Team will direct you out of the cemetery using the Herndon Parkway exit. Please follow their direction for everyone's safety.
  • Weather – Although the current weather forecast for Saturday is dry with temperatures in the low-to-mid 40s, forecasts can change. The event will be held rain or shine, so dress accordingly. There is no rain date.
  • Restrooms – Please be aware that THERE ARE NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS AT THE CEMETERY, so plan accordingly!
  • Wreath laying process –
  • To ensure that all volunteers have the opportunity to participate, take only one wreath at a time. Herndon Woman's Club volunteers will be handing out the wreaths throughout the cemetery. Please be patient and do not help yourselves to the wreath boxes!
  • If you are attending with young children, consider taking a single wreath at a time for your group, using it as a teaching moment as you place the wreath as a group, thank the veteran by name. Talk about what a veteran is and how they have given us the freedoms we enjoy today.
  • Boxes of wreaths will be distributed throughout the various sections of the cemetery. The wreaths have been carefully counted for each section. Do not take wreaths from one section to another section! You should generally not have to cross a roadway to place a wreath – it should be placed within the same section where it was received. If you have any questions, ask a Herndon Woman's Club volunteer.
  • Wreaths will be hung on stakes that have been placed at each veteran's gravesite. Do not leave a wreath at a gravesite that does not have a stake. All wreaths have been sponsored specifically for veterans' graves. They are not yours to take outside the cemetery or to place at a non-veteran's grave. If you believe you have found a veteran's grave without a stake, please do not leave a wreath, but instead contact a Herndon Woman's Club volunteer to look into it.
  • Wreaths should be placed on the stakes with both prongs of the stake securely speared into the top of the wreath. Note that the red bow should be placed at the top of the wreath.

To purchase wreaths for
Chestnut Grove Cemetery
online, click the Button below.
WREATHS ACROSS AMERICA
CHESTNUT GROVE CEMETERY
 
VOLUNTEERS:  This is Herndon Woman’s Club 11th year preparing for the wreath laying ceremony at Chestnut Grove Cemetery.  Our members have been busy fundraising and preparing for several months to meet our goal.  HWC members will place a stake prior to the ceremony to identify each veteran grave.  As a volunteer, you will be placing a wreath on a stake after the ceremony to THANK a VETERAN.  

 
VETERAN SUPPORT:  Check the internet for organizations that work to help veterans.  TEACH children about veterans.  Remember to THANK a veteran for their service.
 
GROUPS:  Any groups tracking volunteer hours are responsible for documenting their time.  Groups with children (scouts) have the opportunity to Teach them about veterans.

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HERNDON WOMAN’S CLUB: 
To support, sponsor or learn more
about the Herndon Woman’s Club
activities in the local community,
visit our website: 
https://herndonwomansclub.org
or send an email for information to:
[email protected]

As a 501(c)(3) charity, contributions/
donations to HWC are tax deductible
​under the US Tax Laws