25-05-2025
Volunteers with The Honor Project return to the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies
Volunteers with The Honor Project return to the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies
Volunteers with The Honor Project return to the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies
Volunteers with The Honor Project return to the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies
Nearly 60 people gathered to remember the lives lost of those who served our country on Saturday, and allow them to not be alone for those who may not be able to come and remember them.
It's nearly double the number of people who came out for the Travis Manion Foundation's first year of "The Honor Project" at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies.
For someone like Angelic Smith, those moments hit home.
"My husband was buried this time of year last year," she said.
Her family is one of many Gold Star families. It's not easy.
"You learn to grow with grief every day," Smith said.
But part of it now involves turning grief into good.
"I know by just seeing all these people that my husband's legacy will always be alive," Smith said.
"We can say their name and remember them for those who cannot be here to remember them," Jessica Gardner, national manager for the 9/11 Heroes Run for the Travis Manion Foundation, said.
It's why the Travis Manion Foundation hosted "The Honor Project" at the cemetery.
"This is our second time here," Gardner said.
It helps demonstrate to families and loved ones that people in graves like these are not forgotten.
"A woman had an idea to do this because someone had said that they had a family member that they wanted them to visit, and they couldn't be there," Gardner said.
The volunteers went around with their packets and stones. For some, this is close to them, too.
"I have had family in the military and I've also had friends in the military," Leslie Brovenzano, chapter event coordinator, Travis Manion Foundation Pittsburgh chapter, said.
State Senator Devlin Robinson made it a point to be here as well, as a veteran of the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan.
"I want to make sure that all of our fallen comrades are honored," Robinson, the senator for Pennsylvania's 37th district, said.
For Smith, that first time was difficult.
"This year, being back here, I feel a little bit stronger," she said.
It's in part because of that growth, but also the sense of comfort it can bring.
"As long as they keep coming out here, laying those coins, [and] saying his name," Smith said, "forever he will be remembered."
