By Judy O’Gorman Alvarez
SHREWSBURY – Each Dec. 19., National Wreaths Across America Day, volunteers throughout the country coordinate wreath-laying ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery, as well as more than 2,100 additional locations in all 50 states, at sea and abroad.
Jake Rue of Oceanport wants to make sure the veterans interred at the First Presbyterian Churchyard, also known as Presbyterian Church Cemetery, are remembered and honored as well.
Jake, or Jacob Bergen Rue VI, comes from a long line of historical families in Monmouth County and the region. His ancestor John Throckmorton, an early Dutch settler after whom Throggs Neck, Bronx was named, settled in Middletown; he died in 1624.
“My family’s roots run very deep in Monmouth County and it comes from both my mother’s and fa- ther’s side,” Rue said. Last year, as a member of the color guard of New Jersey Sons of the American Revolution, he participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at Fairview Cemetery in Middletown. “There were many more veterans buried than there were wreaths,” he said of the ceremony that attracted Scouts, elderly veterans and a few others. “We said their name, rank, what we knew about them and thanked them for their service.”
Jake Rue is organizing a Wreaths Across America ceremony at 11 a.m. Dec. 19 at the Presbyterian Church at Shrewsbury to honor the veterans interred at the church’s cemetery.
Rue said it got him to thinking about his own relative, a first cousin once removed, a veteran, who is buried at the Presbyterian Church Cemetery. “There is so much history here in Shrewsbury,” he said. “We really should be doing something here to acknowl- edge the sacrifices these veterans made over a few centuries.”
Rue said the 70 veterans interred in the cemetery span the years from John Little, who participated in Colonial wars in 1738 against the Spanish and the French, to Vietnam veterans. “Each veteran has a story to tell,” Rue said. He hopes that with the church’s historical committee and with help of Eagle Scouts, they’ll be able to document the veterans and find out more about their lives.
Now Rue is helping to coordinate the first of what he hopes will be an annual Wreaths Across America ceremony at 11 a.m. Dec. 19 at the Presbyterian Church at Shrewsbury. “I am working with the church’s cemetery committee to identify the nearly 70 veterans interred in the graveyard with the idea of solemnly placing a wreath on each veteran gravesite as we say their name, military service and express our gratitude,” he said.
The ceremony, he said, will be conducted under the state’s COVID-19 outdoor ceremony guidelines. The church, and cemetery, is located at 370 Sycamore Ave.
“There are so many organizations that are in need right now,” said Rue, “but I hope that we can take an hour out of our holiday schedule and acknowledge the sacrifice these veterans have made.”
This article originally appeared in the Nov. 26, 2020 print edition of The Two River Times.
