Past submarine veterans honored in wreath laying ceremony

SARATOGA, N.Y. (NEWS10) - The Albany-Saratoga Submarine Veterans Association laid wreaths on former members headstones at the Saratoga National Cemetery on Saturday. The current members came together to honor our past submarine members early in their own wreath-laying ceremony, as National Wreath Laying is on December 14. The members first laid the wreaths on the headstones and then said a few words of remembrance to their departed veterans.

An over 10-year-old tradition keeping the legacy of our country's brave shipman alive. The two-hour-long ceremony honors over 20 submarine veterans, just a week before National Wreath Laying day. James Irwin, Albany-Saratoga Submarine Veterans Association, and past commander, said the ceremony takes place early in order to have a more personal, smaller observance.

"We drive to every section where there is somebody buried and we park our cars, and we all walk over to the grave site, and we place a wreath, and we will talk about our memories of them, the great times we had and the things that they have done," Irwin said.

The ceremony started with four members and has grown into a tradition over which 20 veterans and family members partake. Irwin said the headstones each have numbers on the back of them in numerical order, which helps the members know where each person is located.

"The one woman that was here, her dad was actually lost on a USS Scorpion, and that was back in 1968, and she and her mom and the rest of her family were at the pier down in Norfolk waiting for the submarine to come back in, and it never came back," Irwin said.

The members said they will carry on the ceremony no matter how big it grows and continue to honor their fellow shipmates.