Danger of a flower shortage at Arlington National Cemetery over Memorial Day has been averted, according to a nonprofit group that has been placing the floral tributes since 2011.
When The Memorial Day Flowers Foundation published a statement earlier this month, corporate sponsorship was down. The foundation had raised just 10% of the funds it needed, and had gathered barely 50,000 of the hoped-for 310,000 flowers required to properly observe Memorial Day.
“We were desperate,” said Bernardo Beate, MDFF’s director of operations, in a phone interview Wednesday.
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But since the group raised the alarm, cash donations have risen to 50% of what it says it needs for the Memorial Day weekend, and the organization now has more than 200,000 flowers pledged. The potential shortage of flowers was first reported by Military Times last week.
“The generosity from people and from donors has been overwhelming,” Beate said.
Since 2011, the group has organized an annual event to commemorate military service and remember fallen troops during Memorial Day. Tens of thousands of flowers are donated and delivered in this way.
The group also organizes similar events at other cemeteries across the country including Fort Logan National Cemetery, Fort Custer National Cemetery, and five others.
The flowers placed on graves at Arlington to honor the…
