In November and December, one of the busiest periods of the year for the transportation sector, the Wreaths Across America mission brings drivers together in an effort of unparalleled unity. With a positive, “can-do” work ethic, these professionals make it possible for Americans to honor millions of veterans laid to rest at home and overseas. In 2024, with over 4,909 participating locations, in addition to Arlington National Cemetery, transportation logistics were immense.

Many of these drivers are military veterans and say the truckload of fresh balsam-fir wreaths is the most precious cargo they transport in their careers. Wreaths Across America shares their stories in the “Trucking Tributes” feature online and on Wreaths Across America Radio.

Dan O’Leary has the best of both worlds. Both worlds of trucking that is; freight and the household moving and storage industry and he’s been at it now for several years. “My stepfather, Andy, got me started and I got my Class A license about six weeks after my twenty-first birthday. I’ve done household most of my life, but back in 2020 during Covid, I started a small trucking company, a freight company and I’ve done that since.” However, Dan admits there was something missing, so he got back into the household industry a year-and-a-half ago. “Now I do both,” Dan explained. “I did miss the customers because there’s really no rapport in freight quite honestly. I missed interacting with customers day-to-day and I missed the exercise.”

Originally from New Jersey, Dan now lives just outside of Nashville, Tennessee. I actually got my own authority on Christmas eve of 2020. It was an early Christmas present for me technically. I got hooked up with a bigger bean and rice distributor company so anything I haul out of Nashville is for them. They’ve been great. Even when I’ve been in household for months on end, I can go back to them when I go back home. I took that household mentality of servicing the customer and I brought it to freight, and it’s really worked out well for me.”

Dan never served in the military, but his grandfather served in the Army, and he’s had a few buddies who have served as well. He learned about Wreaths Across America from a friend in the moving industry and reached out in October of 2024. “I had a buddy who was also in moving and he’s been doing it for five or six years now and I decided I was ready to get involved.”

Dan described his first-year experience as “awesome” receiving his one-on-one tour of the National Wreaths Across America Museum by Rob Worcester. “It was after hours, late at night and he was so personable and took me room to room explaining it all. As I told my wife, it was nothing at all what I expected. My buddy got my truck loaded so I could go with Rob. I didn’t stay in Maine long, but I got back to the trucker’s lounge, had a quick little meal and was on my way, because it was starting to snow,” Dan explained. “This year, I want to come up early and take the tour of the forest and some of the things I didn’t get to see.”

Dan also shared the process of getting his load of America’s respect in Maine and getting his lane assigned was simple and things were very well communicated. He said when he arrived at the cemetery volunteers were waiting to help unload his truck and that went very quickly.

Dan explained that he’s not really an emotional sort of guy but another experience in his journey hauling veterans’ wreaths really got to him. It was the moment when he arrived at his stop in Radcliff, Kentucky near Fort Knox where Wreaths Across America volunteers were waiting for him. “When I pulled into that cemetery and saw the flag and all the graves it just hits you. I told my wife it was kind of like having my fourth kid. The emotions were there to be honest and that’s when I knew I was doing it again. The one thing I never thought I’d do in trucking is bring a semi into a cemetery, that was one for the books that’s for sure. As long as I’m driving a truck, I will be up there every December, one hundred percent.”

Thank you, Dan with O’Leary Xpress for your dedication to the mission to remember, honor and teach.

If you’d like to join the Wreaths Across America Honor Fleet, you can get started with a click right here!

You can hear more with Dan on Trucking Tributes, which can be listened to every Truckin’ Tuesday at 11:00 AM and again at 4:00 PM EST on Wreaths Across America Radio and Wednesday at 8:30 AM EST as part of RadioNemo on Sirius XM Channel 146, Road Dog Trucking.”

Discover the Trucking Tributes archive playlist on Soundcloud.com