Thousands of flags decorate Wood National Cemetery

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- A sea of red, white and blue covers the Wood National Cemetery.  Flags stand in front of every headstone where the veterans are buried.

"It shows our respect for the men and women that have done what they have," Mary Baier said.

Baier and her son Nick Heimann placed hundreds of flags in the ground.

"We come out every year to pay tribute to the fallen," Baier said.

It's a tradition for Baier whose father is buried there.  It's Heimann's first time helping her.

"My grandfather is buried about 200 yards from here," Heimann said.  "We've got family ties to it.

Heimann is a veteran himself.  He served as a marine for four years.  He spent nine months in Afghanistan.  Memorial Day weekend is a time to reflect.

"Remembering friends that didn't come back mostly," he said.

Though the mother and son don't know the names on every headstone, they treat those fallen like family.

"It's all in the heart," Baier said.  "It's what they've given for us."

A special Memorial Day celebration will be held Monday at 9 in the morning at the cemetery.