Jesseca Timmons: The Greenfield Beat – People around town: KaitLynne Foote

Jesseca Timmons

Jesseca Timmons COURTESY PHOTO

Published: 06-15-2023 12:54 PM

There are several great events June 25 in Greenfield! The world champion Flying High Dogs Show, sponsored by the Greenfield and Francestown libraries as part of the Summer Reading Kickoff Carnival, is at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday at Oak Park, during the farmers’ and crafters’ market. Don’t miss these incredible “Frisbee dogs,” as it is an unforgettable show!

Also on Sunday, Kim Varney Chandler, author of “Covered Bridges of New Hampshire,” will be discussing her book and Greenfield’s own County No. 8 Bridge over the Contoocook, at 2 p.m. at the Greenfield Historical Society. This talk is part of the year-long celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Greenfield Historical Society.

If you live in Greenfield, you probably know KaitLynne Foote, who has worked at Delay’s Harvester Market for 14 years. KaitLynne is one of those people who can’t sit still; when she’s not helping run the Harvester Market, she’s teaching Sunday school, pursuing an online degree in interior design or volunteering her time as Girl Scout leader. Last fall, Lenny Cornwell suggested I speak to KaitLynne about her involvement in Wreaths Across America. Lenny also told me KaitLynne’s family descends from some of Greenfield’s earliest settlers, including the Goulds, the Blanchards and the Newtons. One ancestor, Ambrose Gould, actually ran one of the first stores in Greenfield.

KaitLynne got involved in Wreaths Across America for personal reasons. Her great-uncle, Donald A. Sargent, was one of 93 American soldiers aboard Tiger Flight 739, which disappeared between Guam and the Philippines in 1962. Because the plane was not in a combat zone when it vanished, the lost soldiers are not included on the Vietnam National Memorial, and the families of the soldiers, civilians and crew onboard never received any answers as to how or why the plane went down.

When the Worcester family of Harrington, Maine, heard about the plight of these veterans’ families, they built a memorial to all 93 soldiers from Tiger Flight 739 and invited the families to the dedication ceremony in Columbia Falls, Maine, in 2021. KaitLynne’s family attended, met the Worcesters and then learned about the Worcesters’ project to remember every veteran grave in America -- Wreaths Across America.

As soon as KaitLynne heard about the Wreaths project, she knew she wanted to get involved, and she knew it would be a perfect project for her Girl Scout troop. She volunteered as a site coordinator.

“We started with the East Hill Cemetery in Peterborough, which includes Revolutionary War veterans, including the drummer boy from the Battle of Lexington and Concord, ” KaitLynn explained. “Peterborough apparently has 900 veterans, but there are no grave maps. We’ve found 620 so far.”

KaitLynne and her Scouts, along with Peterborough’s Sea Cadets troop, carefully place every wreath, speak the veteran’s name aloud and thank them for their service. Last year, one of KaitLynne’s Sunday school students came and played “Taps.”

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“I can never make it through the ceremony without crying,” KaitLynne said.

The Wreaths program currently has about 3,700 sites nationwide, and placed 2 million wreaths last year. The wreaths, which are handmade in Maine, are placed in early December, depending on weather and when the shipment arrives. KaitLynne hopes to expand the program to every Monadnock region town, including Greenfield. (Greenfield’s graves are harder to access than Peterborough’s in winter weather.)

Keep an eye out for KaitLynne and her Wreaths table at Shaw’s, Belletetes, and Delay’s Harvester Market. It costs $17 to sponsor a wreath for a veteran’s grave, and donations can also be made online at wreathsacrossamerica.org.

You can also find KaitLynne on Facebook at Wreaths Across America—nhphtc.

Email me at jesstimm17@gmail.com with ideas for the Greenfield Beat.