RATHDRUM - When "Taps" echoed in the still cemetery air Saturday morning, the only other sounds were the hushed sniffles of stifled emotion and the soft sobbing of a grieving wife whose valiant, veteran husband recently passed.

"We are gathered here today at this memorial site and in memorial sites all around America to remember that we are one nation with one flag," retired Navy veteran Frank Bega of Rathdrum said to the crowd that gathered at the Rathdrum Veterans Memorial. "We are all proud to be Americans who live in a free society made up of many people of many races from many walks of life. The freedoms that we enjoy today have not come without a price."

This was the third year the "Wreaths Across America" program was recognized in Pine Grove Cemetery, organized by members of the Rathdrum Lions Club. Wreaths Across America is a continued effort to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country. Green holiday wreaths with red bows are placed upon their graves as their names are read, remembered and researched by those who leave the wreaths during National Wreaths Across America Day. It is also a time to remember the nation's living veterans, those currently serving in the military, prisoners of war and those missing in action.

Leroy Kronvall, 80, of Rathdrum, retired from the Air Force after 20 years of service. He said he became involved with Wreaths Across America in 2011 when he laid wreaths in the Coeur d'Alene Memorial Gardens. He investigated what needed to be done to extend the program to more locations and found that everyone is invited to create a Wreaths event in his or her community. Kronvall is also a member of the Rathdrum Lions Club, which is located next to Pine Grove Cemetery.

"I thought, 'Why can't we do this?'" he said. "It's long overdue. Most of us here are veterans from the Vietnam era and what a difference it makes from Hanoi Jane and the people and the way the veterans are treated now. We're not baby killers anymore."

Each branch of the military was acknowledged as veteran representatives placed special wreaths with the corresponding branch's flag on stands at the front of the attentive audience. Edwin Waller, 13, of Rathdrum, said the event was moving.

"Me personally, I plan on being a U.S. Marine one day," he said, his face serious and his eyes full of respect.

The Pine Grove ceremony distributed 189 wreaths to veterans' graves, and the extra wreaths were taken to Spirit Lake to honor the sacrifice of the veterans buried there. The wreaths were sponsored by the Rathdrum Lions Club, but wreaths can also be provided free of charge by Wreaths Across America and the Worcester Wreath Co., which began the endeavor to place wreaths on the military graves in Arlington Cemetery. From there, the efforts to recognize the fallen, the POWs, the MIAs, the veterans and those currently serving have expanded.

Kronvall said a question sometimes posed to Wreaths Across America is why the organization does what it does when veterans are honored Memorial Day and Veterans Day.

"The answer is, from the people in the Worcester Wreath Co., 'A veteran doesn't just serve three days,'" Kronvall said. "In December, as you look around and see how many empty chairs during the holidays, they're either due to death or deployment."

Info: www.wreathsacrossamerica.org