Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas gives a great deal of his time to charitable causes, but he doesn’t make a lot of noise about it unlike many politicians.
So it should come as no surprise that he was photographed on Saturday by a Washington, D.C.-based reporter who praised his work helping to spread holiday wreaths on gravesites at Arlington National Cemetery.
Emily Miller snapped a photo of Thomas as he quietly helped other volunteers with Wreaths Across America lay wreaths.
“Love how Justice Clarence Thomas quietly lays wreaths with all the other volunteers every year at Arlington National Cemetery for #wreathsacrossamerica to honor those who have the ultimate sacrifice,” she wrote on Twitter.
“Justice Clarence Thomas does #WreathsAcrossAmerica [to] honor the fallen and spend time supporting Gold Star families at Arlington. Show respect for those of them reading this thread in your replies,” she added in a follow-up.
Justice Clarence Thomas does #WreathsAcrossAmerica fo honor the fallen and spend time supporting Gold Star families at Arlington. Show respect for those of them reading this thread in your replies.
— Emily Miller (@emilymiller) December 18, 2022
But this isn’t the first time that Thomas has given his time to the organization or to the national cemetery.
“Thousands of volunteers braved the rainy weather, Saturday January 24th 2015, to help clean up more than 200,000 wreaths throughout Arlington National Cemetery. In this photo Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas lends a hand,” the description on Creative Commons reads, though the date on the photo is 2013.
The organization Thomas was volunteering for has grown in size and influence since the effort began in 1992. But since, it has grown dramatically.
“In 2007, the Worcester family, along with veterans, and other groups and individuals who had helped with their annual veterans wreath ceremony in Arlington, formed Wreaths Across America, a non-profit 501-(c)(3) organization, to continue and expand this effort, and support other groups around the country who wanted to do the same,” the group’s website says.
“In 2008, over 300 locations held wreath-laying ceremonies in every state, Puerto Rico and 24 overseas cemeteries. Over 100,000 wreaths were placed on veterans’ graves. Over 60,000 volunteers participated. And that year, December 13, 2008 was unanimously voted by the US Congress as ‘Wreaths Across America Day,’” the site noted further.
By “2014, Wreaths Across America and its national network of volunteers laid over 700,000 memorial wreaths at 1,000 locations in the United States and beyond, including ceremonies at the Pearl Harbor Memorial, as well as Bunker Hill, Valley Forge and the sites if the September 11 tragedies. This was accomplished with help from 2,047 sponsorship groups, corporate contributions, and donations of trucking, shipping, and thousands of helping hands. The organization’s goal of covering Arlington National Cemetery was met in 2014 with the placement of 226,525 wreaths,” the group said.
