Headline News
Teamsters Honor Veterans at Santa Fe National Cemetery
Over 30 Teamsters and their family members from around the state of New Mexico gathered at Santa Fe National Cemetery on Dec. 15, 2018, to participate in the annual Wreaths Across America project.
The Teamsters were tasked with a special gravesite-specific assignment where individuals sponsor a wreath specifically for their loved one who is buried within the Santa Fe National Cemetery. There were also about 900 wreaths sponsored that were not gravesite specific, so a section of the cemetery is designated every year where the non-specific sponsored wreaths are placed.
The Teamsters broke off into two groups to tackle the special assignment. The assignment was completed successfully with due diligence and honor for each specific individual gravesite that received a wreath. There are over 60,000 gravesites at the Santa Fe National Cemetery. In total, over 300 volunteers showed up to successfully lay over 3,000 wreaths.
The Wreaths Across America organization was officially formed in 2007, but the family behind it has been laying wreaths for veterans since 1992. The Santa Fe National Cemetery, along with Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Community Partnership Division, has participated in this great project since 2011. Since the beginning of LANL’s participation, the Community Partnership Division has partnered up with various groups, departments, and divisions within the Los Alamos National Laboratory for the success of this project. For the first time ever, Teamsters Local 492 partnered up with the Community Partnership Division, and the Santa Fe National Cemetery, to make the 2018 Wreaths Across America project a memorable success.
“I want to take this time to thank all the Teamsters and their families who came out to help make the 2018 Wreaths Across America project at the Santa Fe National Cemetery a success,” said Teamster Brother Ralph Martinez of LANS/TRIAD who helped organize the Teamsters participation. “Thank you to the Teamsters listed below who volunteered their Saturday to help honor the veterans. It was a great day of bonding within the brotherhood and I look forward to more of these days ahead. Thank you guys!”
Teamsters and their family members in alphabetical order from LANL were: Daniel M. Abeyta, Derrick Aragon, James T. Armstrong II, Danny Esquibel, Chris Garcia, Peter Garza, Alex Gutierrez, Leroy Gonzales, Christopher & Rubina Loibl, Phillip & Vincent Lujan, Jesse Marquez, Kenny Ortiz, Modest Quintana, Michael Rivera, James Romero, Jimmy M. Sandoval, Howard Smith, Richard Suazo, Adrian Trujillo, Phillip Valdez. Teamsters from ABF were: Joseph Carrillo, Marvin Garcia, Stephen, Pamela, Dillion, Angel, & Aspen Rogers, Kirk and Brandon Weis, and Larry Ortiz from Roadway.