Retired members representing all branches of the U.S Armed Services will join with members of the Montana Wing of the Civil Air Patrol to honor Treasure State veterans at a ceremony in Helena Saturday morning.

The public is invited to attend the ceremony, which starts at 10 a.m. at the Montana State Veterans Cemetery adjacent to Fort Harrison.

It is one of dozens of similar ceremonies occurring at the same time all across the nation to honor veterans and active duty military members.

The Wreaths Across America idea began in 1992 at Arlington National Cemetery and has now spread nationwide, thanks to the Civil Air Patrol. This is the second year Montana has participated in the observance.

The Civil Air Patrol is celebrating its 66th anniversary this month. It was founded just a week before the attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II. Sixty-four volunteers died while carrying out CAP missions including submarine and border patrol during the war.

The 56,000 members of the Civil Air Patrol continue that as the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. In Montana, 250 officers and cadets of the Montana Wing perform search and rescue, homeland security, disaster relief, and counter drug missions at the request of government or law enforcement agencies.