Retired veteran is lone volunteer at Baton Rouge National Cemetery Day of Service
At the Baton Rouge American National Cemetery on Friday, the Veterans Administration field crew stood ready to welcome dozens of volunteers to clear hundreds of headstones. A national day of service was organized by the service group Carry the Load to recognize the men and women who have enlisted in the U.S. military since 9/11.It was a nationwide effort, with the Baton Rouge Cemetery as the only site participating in the state. Retired Lt. Col. Wynn Gillan, of Hammond, was the only volunteer. served 4 years in the Army and another 36 years in the Air Force. “It really touches me when I see all the rows of headstones,” Gillan said. “I almost tear up sometimes because it represents a brother, sister or father. It’s so touching.” While Gillan was the only volunteer for 9/11, he did not work alone. Field crews from other Louisiana National Cemeteries carried backpacks of soap and water, while VA Cemetery Director Eugenia Simmons bent down to scrub headstones and talk about the lives left behind. remember. “We as people are experiencing two deaths,” Simmons said. “That is, of course, when our mortal bodies leave this earth, and the last time we die is the last time anyone speaks our name. So to come out and volunteer to help us maintain the cemetery and to say their name so that we can continue to let them know that we have not forgotten.
At the Baton Rouge American National Cemetery on Friday, the Veterans Administration field crew stood ready to welcome dozens of volunteers to clear hundreds of headstones.
A National Day of Service was organized by the service group Carry the Load to recognize the men and women who have enlisted in the U.S. military since 9/11.
It was a nationwide effort, with Baton Rouge Cemetery as the only participating site in the state. Retired Lt. Col. Wynn Gillan, of Hammond, was the only volunteer.
“I’m glad I came,” Gillan said, as he moved among the home plate with a scrub brush he’d brought from home.
A helicopter gunner in Vietnam, Gillan served 4 years in the Army and another 36 years in the Air Force.
“It really touches me when I see all the rows of headstones,” Gillan said. “I almost tear up sometimes because it represents a brother, sister or father. It’s so touching.”
Although Gillan was the only volunteer for the 9/11 day of service, he did not work alone. Field crews from other Louisiana National Cemeteries carried backpacks of soap and water, while VA Cemetery Director Eugenia Simmons bent down to clean headstones and talk about the lives left behind. remember.
“We as people are experiencing two deaths,” Simmons said. “That is, of course, when our mortal bodies leave this earth, and the last time we die is the last time anyone speaks our name. So to come out and volunteer to help us maintain the cemetery and to say their name so we can continue to let them know we haven’t forgotten.”
For more opportunities to volunteer at Louisiana National Cemeteries, visit the VA’s website at www.volunteer.va.gov or click here.