Every December, Wreaths Across America loads hundreds of thousands of Christmas wreaths onto hundreds of trucks and heads to Arlington National Cemetery and military grave sites across the country. Volunteers then take each wreath, one by one, and lay them upon the graves of the fallen.

This year, the organization has already placed 900,000 wreaths.

It’s tremendous; there’s a lot of help involved. We have 320 trucks from about 150 volunteer truck companies,” said Rob Worcester, logistics director for Wreaths Across America.

The organization started as a small community initiative in 1992 that delivered 5,000 wreaths to Arlington National Cemetery. In 2007, Wreaths Across America became a nonprofit and distributed 40,000 wreaths. Eight years later, the organization has grown so large in scope that it nearly draped one million wreaths in a single year.

Congress has even recognized the nonprofit by declaring Dec. 13 Wreaths Across America Day in 2008.

The families of fallen veterans can order branch-specific wreaths or request to place them upon the grave of their loved ones themselves. They can also participate in the truck convoy that travels to Arlington Cemetery and fundraises for local Veterans of Foreign Wars chapters along the way.

“One part of Wreaths Across America day is an honor convoy that goes directly to Arlington (Cemetery). The 12-truck convoy takes six days (with) stops at schools, veterans’ homes and other community centers,” said Worcester.

Wreaths Across America’s main goal is to “remember all the fallen, honor their families and teach our children about the cost of freedom.” More than 1,000 communities unite every year to fundraise, lay wreaths and remember the fallen.

The organization is associated with Christmas, so its volunteers do not place wreaths upon the headstones of non-Christian veterans. However, the families of those veterans can still request a wreath if they like.