Remember Veterans with poppy

CRESCO - Honor our fallen warriors and contribute to the continuing needs of our veterans on Friday, May 19 at various locations in Cresco when members of American Legion Auxiliary Unit 135 distribute bright red poppies for Memorial Day in exchange for a donation. 

The Flanders Field poppy has become an internationally known and recognized symbol of the lives sacrificed in war and the hope that none died in vain.

“Wear the poppy this Memorial Day weekend to honor and remember our fallen warriors who willingly served our nation and made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom,” said Wilma Mohs and Barb Zak, ALA Poppy Co-Chairs. “We must never forget.”

The poppy also honors hospitalized and disabled veterans who hand craft many of the red, crepe paper flowers. Making the poppies provides a financial and therapeutic benefit to the veterans, as well as a benefit to thousands of other veterans and their families through the donations collected.

In the battlefields of Belgium during World War I, poppies grew wild amid the ravages of war. The overturned soils of battle enabled the poppy seeds to be covered, allowing them to grow and forever serve as a reminder of the bloodshed of war.

American Legion Auxiliary (ALA) members have dedicated themselves for nearly a century to meeting the needs of our nation’s veterans, military and their families both here and abroad.

As part of the world’s largest women’s patriotic service organization, ALA volunteers across the country also step up to honor veterans and military through annual scholarships and with ALA Girls State programs, teaching high school juniors to be leaders grounded in patriotism and Americanism. To learn more about the ALA’s mission or to volunteer, donate or join, visit www. ALAforVeter ans.org.