Members of the Rotary Club of SaddleBrooke bundled up on a blustery morning to place wreaths at the graves of our veterans. Pictured (left to right) are Neil Deppe, Linda Howard, Dianne Fulkerson, Bill Demeroutis, John Howard, Barbara Treick, Monica Oszust, Ed Treick, Barbara Barr, and John Oszust.
Honoring Our Veterans
Barbara Barr
A few months ago, new member Linda Howard approached the Community Service Committee of the Rotary Club of SaddleBrooke with a new idea for service to our community. Linda has retired from the military and encouraged us to participate in the Wreaths Across America program. As the committee looked into the program, we became more and more excited.
Then we found out that in the previous year, donations for Wreaths Across America had fallen short at the Arizona Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery at Marana. Somewhere around 250 veterans did not get a wreath on their grave due to lack of donations. Members of the Rotary Club of SaddleBrooke contacted our region’s assistant governor, Marc Snow. Together, we set up a challenge to the Rotary Clubs in our region to make donations to Wreaths Across America for the Marana cemetery. This included Rotary clubs in Marana, Dove Mountain, Oro Valley, and SaddleBrooke. The challenge was a great success. Not only were there wreaths for all the veterans in the cemetery, but additional funds to support the Wreaths Across America program at other cemeteries.
However, the most wonderful part of Wreaths Across America occurred on Dec. 18. Members of the Rotary Club of SaddleBrooke spread out to the Arizona Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery at Marana, as well as other cemeteries around Tucson and throughout the United States. It was such an honor for us to place wreaths at the gravesites while we spoke the name of the veteran and thanked them for their service.
Rotary was the very first service organization. Today, Rotary has grown to be the world’s largest volunteer organization. Rotarians can be found in more countries than the Red Cross.
The Rotary Club of SaddleBrooke is not only an award-winning organization devoted to making a difference locally and globally, it is also a club that enjoys coming together for lunch and lifelong learning. We currently meet weekly at the Ranch House at SaddleBrooke Ranch and on Zoom. Plus, we enjoy getting together for social events and service projects. We have fun making a difference.
The Rotary Club of SaddleBrooke is open to anyone who is living or working in SaddleBrooke, SaddleBrooke Ranch, Oracle, Catalina, Oro Valley, and all surrounding communities. For more information, contact Wendy Guyton at 520-404-5712 or [email protected].