What Memorial Day is Like at Evergreen Washelli
Dan White at Evergreen Washelli talks about how we can best honor our loved ones who have passed on Memorial Day. We put on a huge event, our 92nd one this year. We follow military protocol and offer assistance for parking and getting to chairs. Michael Reagan was our guest speaker, a famous portrait artist. For free he does portraits for fallen veterans and has become quite an inspirational speaker.
View Episode Transcript
*The following is the output of transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors.
The following podcast is a special presentation of answers for elders featuring Evergreen Washelli and welcome back to answers for elders radio every win. Dan Is back again. Thanks for being here. Dan, my pleasure. And Dan is with Evergreen Washelli and we are all talking today’s program just about Memorial Day. How can we honor best honor I loved ones and certainly all of our families today or are thinking about this weekend, those that have passed, and you know there’s a lot of families. Obviously Evergreen Washelli has been around a long time. So you’ve had a lot of interments there in your cemeteries, and so you guys put on a pretty big event during Memorial Day, don’t you? Dan? Yes, we do. In fact, this will be our ninety second one that we are doing this year. Wow it. I bet it’s huge. It is huge. We the Nice unique thing about it is that we follow the military protocol uh hunt, and so we also offer assistance for those that are handicapped to be able to park near the event. Nice people that will be able to assist them to get to chairs and it’s quite the thing. It’s all hands on deck weekend. It is so all hands on deck for especially for that that money. Yeah, for what happens there. And this year we actually are very honored to have as our guest speaker Michael Reagan, who has been at the University of Washington but is an internationally known portrait artistand in his collection he has painted like Bob Hope, Reagan’s very, very many political people. But he’s also what he does for free is he will also paint and do some portraits for fallen veterans. So it’s we does and talks about the American fallen hero. He has become quite the inspirational talker and speaker and so we’re very honored to be able to have him. But all day to get there, people starting and at thirty in the morning we start, which is if people can get there that early, if they’re up anyway. It’s quite a me. It’s quite quite. Yeah, it’s quite a sight to see where we have the veteran cemetery and what happens. There’s fifty five hundred of them. We actually have boy scout troops and other volunteers and at that time they will all begin to go up and place flags on every one of those headstones. Probably takes about a half hour to do, but all fifty five hundred, it’s quite impressive to kind of I can imagine. And so we encourage people to come out to starts at thirty in the morning. Thirty in the morning, Huh? That’s the amazing yea. We call that the placement of the Avenue of flags. And now, do they have a particular process that they go through or is it just kind of that they’re just all out there doing it? Well, no, we actually pull up a trailer that has the flags. God actually have a neat little tool that helps to poke into the ground place the flag in. So it makes it a lot easier because sometimes as sticks you know hard to push the right just break, but this place is a hole and then you can place the flag and so yeah, so that’s that’s what happens there. So we go ahead and we and we do that. Then the the main event actually starts at around two o’clock. That’ll be the actual service, but we play music and such before that. So you’re welcome to come ahead of time and it’s probably Nice, you know, if you go to the flag ceremony you can kind of do your own thing, go on or your loved one and listen to music before you actually go to the rest of the program so it really makes a nice makes it a nice, very nice flow. Then we’ll have the speakers and then immediately following that, at around three o’clock, three fifteen, we actually have a gentleman whose father was and emial block, who actually was a metal of honor recipient. Right. So he takes the tour and he will show people the seven medal of honor winners that we have placed in the cemetery. Well, so we’re very lucky to have that because you know, when you think about that and you think about honoring the Medal of honor is the highest military reward or decoration that you can get. And you know people when they hear the word metal of honor it really means, and what it was given for, was those that conspicuously or by Gallantry or intrepidy, at the risk of one’s life, above and beyond the call of duty, while engaged in compact action against an enemy of the United States. Isn’t it true that most metal of an honor recipients it was warded posthumous humistly, isn’t that correct? Yes, for a lot of them. Yes, in fact, we have one that that we that we found and did the research and actually found that he was entitled to become a metal of honor recipient, and that was an Emil Frederickson, and he was with his naval buddies and we did a lot of research. It took almost almost seven years to do the research to be able to find and and then last year the actual ceremony took place. Wow. So yeah, so you can see those out there. So it’s it’s quite interesting, quite fun. So we are talking to Mr Dan White and he is with Evergreen Washelli. Dan, tell us a little bit about where your located and a little bit about location area. Okay, well, this one our main locations at one, one, one, one, one, five ones a row. Have anue north and that’s just south of Home Depot and Northwest Hospital. But that’s our main location. has about hundred sixty acres total. That’s where the event will take place. It’s very unique. We and we encourage you to bring the family out. It really helps for kids to understand what the military does for us. It also helps him understand the importance of Memorial Day right and educate. Is the parking. Parking is good. It really is. You know, there’s room that people park all along the different the roads and sanction right able to to. So there’s good of space for people. There’s space. And then, of course, you said in an earlier segment, I just want to reiterate the fact that you do have facilities for those that have disabilities correct to be able to get them on and assist them from their vehicles and wheelchairs and such to get them to where the main where the main presentation takes place. That’s awesome. Yes, and then, as far as the you know, the ability for you to go honor your loved one during this day, there’s going to you have that wonderful window before the program starts. Tell us a little bit about you know, what should someone like you talked about to clean the headstone? What are some things that you might suggest people bring with them? Well, for cleaning the markers, most of our markers are granite and so really the best way to do that is bring a plastic bristle brush, not a metal one. Can write, I’m scratching, but if you bring something like a automatic dishwater the urgent. Huh, you know, like cascade powder, right, and use a little bit of water. Has a little bit of that grid, little bit of Grit, yeah, grid, and then you can use that to be able to go ahead and brush and then just pour some water on and you will be amazed at how new it looks. Again. Wow, that’s awesome. That’s awesome. And then as far as the you know, you talked a little bit about it’s okay to trim around the outside. So you might want to bring a little bit of a trimmer or scissor scissors. Yeah, we provide that as part of our our care. We will go and we do trim around the markers, but sometimes families like to just be involved and them serves, and so you’re absolutely bring up pair of scissors and be able to do that. And it’s okay to flowers, bring lawn chairs and blanket and half of it is can do all those big things. That’s yes, it is. Now, if somebody wants to find their loved one and they don’t necessarily know where they’re located, you guys kind of help them with that. Is that correct? Yes, they can always stop at the front office and get a map, which will give them directions. But during this entire weekend, Friday through Monday, we have people that will be out there and golf carts that will be able to assist families. Oh, that’s wonderful. That’s wonderful. So you and they’ll be easily to be reck not reck yes, and is that true with your abby view location as well? There will be people that will be out and have tents at our Abbey view location when tents and there will be manning the tents, and so we supply some water. Will probably have some flowers, but also we have flags available for people that they can pay a small donation and be able to have a flag. And so, as far as bringing flowers, what kind of flowers are recommended? Usually just real live flowers, no artificial flowers during this time of the year, right, we allow artificial flowers from November through March because we’re not mowing right and so they need to be live flowers. But whatever you want, you can certainly bring and we will leave them with your loved ones until they begin to die off or until where we need to mow right right, and then you guys pick them up at that time. Yes, we guys do that and as far as any other kind of remembrances that you take the grave. Sometimes I will go there and I’ll see somebody has a teddy bear there, things like that. What what are your kind of your recommendations on stuff like that? Well, anything that you want to bring, you’re welcome to bring. And said we don’t we can’t guarantee how long it may be there. So understand that we have no control over people right that come through the park and that may or may not remain there. But right, as long as it’s there, our grounds people are very are very good about picking it up and replacing it if we’re just doing our normal man sir, sure, because I know that that’s important. Yep, obviously I’ve had people bring little rocks, you know, with a little very common in the in the Jewish tradition. Yes, at our Jewish locations up and and Abbey View we have lots of rocks around the different I’ll see you have a Jewish section at Abbey View. Yes, it’s actually it’s run by two different temples that have purchased God graves there, but it’s at our abbey view locations. That’s wonderful. So that’s wonderful. So, Dan, tell us a little bit about how we reach you. Best way to reach me is by my cell phone. Four to five two, four, one, two, eight hundred and fifty three, or you can reach me email DWhite@washelli.com or call our main number to zero six three, six, two hundred, fifty two hundred and ask for me. Yeah, and the other thing just really everyone is to know that Dan is here to answer your questions about any questions that you guys might have as a family of you know, what are the right that steps to go. You know, maybe, maybe wash all he’s a fit. Maybe it’s not, but the point is I encourage our listeners to pick up the phone and call Dan. He’s such a wealth of information. And also please check out Dan’s expert profile page on answersforeldersradio.com. He’s got so many amazing, you know, words of wisdom for all of us and how we can honor I loved ones. Dan, thank you so much for being on the show today and happy memorial thing. Happy Memorial days has and thanks. This has been a special presentation of answers for elders featuring Evergreen Washelli For more information about Evergreen Washelli. Their website is washelli.com. That’s washelli.com.
No post found!
Popular Articles About Elder Law
Originally published May 26, 2018