National Cemetery Honors Veterans
On Wednesday September 25th, we gathered at the Tipp Center for Muster & Mingle. We were very excited for the evening, both for dinner and the speaker. We are so grateful for the continued partnership with City Barbeque, and for their generosity with dinner. We had pulled pork and chicken, mac and cheese, and green beans, with cookies as a sweet treat.
After dinner, we all turned our attention to Nick Hetzer, with the Dayton National Cemetery at the Dayton VA. It was clear from the beginning that he was very passionate about the cemetery and those veterans in his care. First he shared some cemetery facts with us. There are veterans from every US conflict buried in the Dayton National Cemetery, with Christian Null, a Revolutionary War veteran having been reinterred in the cemetery in 1989. He then spoke of the updates and changes happening at the cemetery, in order for them to keep serving veterans for many years to come. There are multiple internment options at the cemetery, from full casket burials to internment to cremains in the newly completed Columbaria.
Nick also talked about who is eligible to be buried at the Dayton National Cemetery, as well as what all benefits are included in burial. They perform ceremonies every day, at 9:00, 10:00, 11:00, 1:00, and 2:00. That hour allows families to have small gathering in the committal shelter, but they do not allow families at the graveside, due to the number of ceremonies performed every day. He encouraged all those in attendance to speak with their families about this burial option, if it is something that they would like, as most families don’t know how to begin the process. All funeral directors should be able to submit the necessary paperwork, however if there is any confusion, you can pre-plan with the cemetery directly.
We really learned a lot with Nick, and several veterans left with plans to talk to their families about committal at the Dayton National Cemetery. If you are curious about Decedent Affairs benefits, we encourage you to check out our Taboo Topics event, coming up on October 15. This is an event that will help you to understand all of the benefits you and your family are entitled to. For more information on Taboo Topics and our other upcoming events, check out our Upcoming Events page!