On a snowy December day at Calverton National Cemetery, an army of volunteers fanned out in the garden of stones placing gifts of remembrance on the graves of the fallen.

The ceremony is part of a nationwide mission called Wreaths Across America.

The tradition began in 1992, when Maine wreath maker Morrill Worcester donated 5,000 wreaths to Arlington National Cemetery.

Worcester's annual tribute continued quietly until 2005, when a Pentagon photo of the wreath-decorated graves at Arlington went viral on the internet.

Donations poured in, and the nonprofit Wreaths Across America was formed. 

This year, tens of thousands of volunteers placed close to one million wreaths at 1,100 sites in all 50 states. The volunteers do it because of the spectacular sight it creates and the powerful statement it makes.

Over 400 truckloads of wreaths were transported across the country through a network of hundreds of drivers who donated trucking and diesel.