English Bulldog Puppies for Sale in Arlington, VA

WASHINGTON — Jason Westcott, an Army veteran, lost six battle buddies to suicide in five years after leaving the military. One veteran was married with six young children. Another was 24 years old when he took his own life.

The men served at different times, but their struggles were tragically the same, said Westcott, who served in the Army National Guard for 22 years.

Each veteran found it hard to adjust to the pressures of civilian life — from finding jobs to supporting families — as they dealt with their own trauma from military combat, Westcott said.

“The battlefield was not just off in some distant land. There was a war at home for friends who couldn’t handle any more, but they did not know how to ask for help,” said Westcott, 52, who had multiple deployments in the Middle East.

The former staff sergeant — who is now a commercial truck driver — is leading a convoy this week carrying tens of thousands of fresh balsam wreaths from a Maine farm bound for Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

Nationwide, a total of 3 million wreaths will be placed at 5,600 locations in ceremonies sponsored by Wreaths Across America, a nonprofit that sponsors an annual event that honors military service with holiday wreaths tied with red ribbons. Sites span schools, town monuments, veterans’ homes and cemeteries.

For Westcott, participating in the mammoth undertaking allows him to pay tribute to fellow service members and recognize the contributions of comrades he lost to suicide at home. “I want to show their sacrifices were not in vain,” he said.

The placement of the wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery starts at 8 a.m. Saturday. It will conclude at noon with a wreath ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, according to Wreaths Across America.

Visitors who want to take part by placing wreaths at gravesites or need more information on the event are encouraged to visit the Wreaths Across America website.

Volunteers in 2024 placed 260,000 wreaths at gravesites and niche columns at Arlington, according to officials.

“Wreaths Across America would not be successful without the help of volunteers, active organizations and the generosity of the trucking industry,” according to the family-run organization.

Westcott, a driver for NFI Industries of New Jersey, is leading a convoy of 14 trucks traveling from Worcester Balsam Farm in Columbia Falls, Maine. The convoy has been making several stops to participate in smaller tributes ahead of the wreath-laying at Arlington. A total of 67 trucks will arrive at Arlington bearing wreaths for fallen troops.

“Even playing a small role in this is humbling,” Westcott said. “Every wreath represents a life given in service and a family’s sacrifice. I’m just doing my part to ensure these heroes are never forgotten.”

Trucks first headed to West Quoddy Head Light, in Lubec, Maine, the easternmost point of the contiguous U.S. They continued to Liberation Monument in New Jersey, the site of a memorial that commemorates the liberation of Nazi-held concentration camps by Allied forces in World War II.

Several Wreaths Across America events are planned Friday in and around the nation’s capital. They include ceremonies at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial and the World War II Memorial.

Westcott said his work as a commercial truck driver is another way for him to contribute to his country, as he moves goods from farms and factories to stores and consumers.

Trucks haul nearly three-quarters of the nation’s freight, enabling the nation’s supply chain to run smoothly. “I am continuing to serve as a civilian but on a different scale,” Westcott said. Twelve percent of the drivers at NFI Industries are veterans.

This is Westcott’s fifth time taking part in Wreaths Across America. But 2025 marks his first visit to Arlington National Cemetery. “This is probably the most valuable load I’ve ever pulled,” he said.

Westcott began work in 1996 as a commercial long-haul trucker four years after he joined the Army National Guard. But military service changed dramatically for him in 2003 with deployments to the Middle East, including Iraq and Kuwait.

“Things got heavy after that,” he said.

Westcott faced his own adjustments after leaving the military.

Westcott said he learned to build a network of friends and family who supported him, received counseling from a former Green Beret, and takes part in events that show public support for veterans.

But he credits his stepfather for helping him get through a “tough spot” when he hit a low point with feelings of hopelessness.

“There’s a stigma around asking for help — that it’s a sign of weakness. But I gave him a call, and we agreed to meet somewhere to talk,” Westcott said. “He did not let me drive away after that. In the grand scheme of things, I’m glad I listened.”

Bill Podolski was alone at recess as an elementary schooler in New York when the band teacher approached him.

Podolski didn’t have many friends at the time, he said, and the educator mentioned he might be a good fit in the band. He accepted the recommendation and quickly learned an instrument.

Then, his perspective shifted. He felt a connection with other students in a “way that I wasn’t finding on the soccer field,” he recalled.

It’s the same feeling Podolski said he hopes to create for his choir students at H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program in Arlington, Virginia. He won’t accept it when someone tells him they can’t sing, and he strives to help everyone find their voice.

A parent nominated Podolski for the 2026 Grammy Music Educator Award for those efforts, and he learned last week he’s a finalist for the prestigious recognition.

“My quest as a music teacher is helping students like me, but all students, to feel that music can be a place where everyone belongs, and that there’s a place for you to be seen and heard, and for it to just be a safe place for my students to make connections and thrive through music,” Podolski told WTOP.

He’s been teaching at the Rosslyn school for 18 years and is now its director of choral activities. He works with over 100 students in the chorus program each day, and teaches a handful of kids general music. He also co-directs the high school and middle school musicals.

But his teaching isn’t always about singing. Sometimes, students play with a big parachute or beach balls and bean bags. They organize games that aren’t about singing, with the goal of helping each participant find their voice.

“Through those community builders, through the sense of play, that’s how I seek to help students find their voice and find their confidence in singing,” Podolski said.

He oversees four school-based concerts each year, and some students also sing at community events. Planning a concert, he said, is typically the most difficult part of the job.

He aims to pick a variety of music, representing a wide range of cultures, languages and perspectives. Often, he selects a theme, and hopes to create a “subtle story” from song to song.

Podolski suspected the parent that nominated him for the award did so, in part, because of the H-B Woodlawn Community Chorus. Each December, he picks three nights to invite community members, parents, grandparents and alumni to learn two songs that the group sings at the school’s winter chorus concert.

The award’s pool started with thousands of candidates and went down to 250 quarterfinalists, 25 semifinalists and 10 finalists. The Music Educator Award honors teachers who have made a “significant and lasting” contribution to the music education field, according to the Grammy Museum’s website.

Annie Ray, a Fairfax County orchestra teacher, won the award in 2024.

For Podolski, the recognition came as a surprise. He learned about his nomination through an email and said it’s something he’s “so humbled and grateful for.”

He said his focus remains on helping students feel something unique when they walk through his classroom.

“I want them to feel proud,” Podolski said. “I want them to feel what it feels like to have goose bumps” while performing.

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