EDWARDSVILLE, Pa. — When folks come to the Edwardsville Veterans Park in Luzerne County, the focus for many is playtime.
But murals and monuments remind us who the park is dedicated to.
Now, this Warrior Tree is decorated with empty chairs that some might find around their holiday dinner table.
"All branches and everything like that. A lot of them can't come home for certain holidays. Now, Christmas is the biggest holiday of all, okay, so that's why the tree," explained Ceferino Declet.
Declet and his wife Karen have been decorating this tree for eleven years to honor service members who cannot be home for the holidays.
"My father, my brother, my son, he was in Afghanistan, everything. I do this because I support all the veterans I can," said Declet.
The front of these stars are painted by local children.
"They're all they're all neat, but they're all different and it's the kids showing their support," said Declet.
The colors of the ribbons and on the back of the stars that decorate the tree represent different reasons why these brave men and women might not be home for the holidays.
Whether it's a current deployment or the ultimate sacrifice.
"This is to show the veterans out there and all the soldiers out there who care and we miss you," said Declet.
For more information on the Edwardsville Warrior Tree Project, click here.
