HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Volunteers gathered in Honolulu Hale Friday to “sew a lei for Memorial Day.”

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Every year, community members come together before Memorial Day Weekend to sew and gather 38,000 lei, one for each grave at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Punchbowl.

“This is my fourth year, and I just think it’s wonderful,” said Oh Sugai, who volunteered to sew lei for the annual tradition. “I have family up at Punchbowl, so I think about him. This is going up to his grave.”

Lei-making was spread across 17 venues over two days. Friday’s event at Honolulu Hale included live Hawaiian music and hula.

“This is a great way to, not only show appreciation for those who have served our country, but to also connect with community on that shared thread,” said Honolulu Parks and Recreation spokesman Nate Serota.

The city says this year, the tradition encountered a setback: a shortage of plumeria from local groves due to March’s devastating Kona low storms.

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“Because of the storms earlier, there were no plumeria,” said Catherine Chang, a lei-making volunteer for over 10 years. “We were worried about the shortage of plumeria.”

Officials said individual donations are helping to close the gap.

Graduating students are encouraged to donate their fresh lei from their celebrations at Punchbowl Cemetery.

Lei drop offs:

The 75th Mayor’s Memorial Day Ceremony begins at 8:30 a.m. Monday and is free and open to the public.

The program includes oli, color guard, presentation of wreaths, firearm salute, military aircraft flyover, playing of taps, performances from the Royal Hawaiian Band and Sounds of Aloha, and hula from the 96th Lei Court.

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LEARN MORE: Mayor’s Memorial Day Ceremony