We Care About Our Active Duty Military and Veterans

Our duty is to provide you and your family with professional assistance in understanding your veteran burial benefits and options in preplanning your mortuary and funeral services; this includes your spouse’s benefits.

Whether being placed in a National Cemetery or a private one, mortuary and funeral services are not provided by the VA and are the family’s responsibility. Many veterans are unaware of this, thinking that everything is taken care of, often leaving their families with unexpected expenses.

Traditional Elements & Honors to be Included in Your Preplanning


Standard honor military funerals can include:

  • A military chaplain for family members

  • Flag Presentation Service by the chaplain of the American Legion

  • A Final Salute at the gravesite


Full honor military funerals include all standard honors in addition to the following:

  • Depending on their rank, general officers and flag officers receive a 16 gun salute

  • The US flag draped over the casket, and given to the next of kin following the service

  • The playing of Taps by a lone bugler or an audio recording

 

Other Veteran Benefits

In addition to honors, we can provide you with the information and forms for the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) which can be filled out in advance and placed in your preplanning file for use at the time of need along with a copy of your DD-214:

  • A Presidential Memorial Certificate. This is a certificate expressing the nation's recognition of the veteran's service. The veteran's name is inscribed and the certificate bears the signature of the president. Certificates are issued in the name of honorably discharged, deceased veterans. Contact us for assistance in applying for a Presidential Memorial Certificate, and we would be happy to guide you through the process.

  • Headstones or Markers. The VA provides headstones and markers for the graves of veterans anywhere in the world and for eligible dependents of veterans buried in national, state veteran or military cemeteries.

  • Memorial Plots. If an eligible veteran's remains are not available for burial, the VA will provide a plot and headstone or marker in a national cemetery for memorialization. If you wish to place the memorial in a cemetery other than a national cemetery, the VA will provide the headstone or marker but not the plot itself.

  • Burial in a VA National Cemetery. This includes the gravesite, opening and closing of the grave,a grave box, and perpetual care.

  • Reimbursement of Burial Expenses. For information on eligibility and the different levels of potential reimbursement, please review their Guide to VA Burial Allowances.

 

Additional Resources

Please visit the following links for detailed information about the options available for honoring service members and other aspects of military funerals: