Homeless Vets to get Military Funerals
Every night over 270,000 homeless veterans sleep on the streets. Why? The reasons are many, but downsizing of the military, reductions in educational benefits, physical and mental ailments, and war-related mental illnesses, such as post traumatic stress syndrome, all contribute to the tremendous number of our nation’s veterans who are homeless right now.
“A disgrace,” says former Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Jesse Brown, “that we have men and women who served in American uniform who are out on the mean streets with no place to go and few prospects for a better life.” In addition to the former Secretary, the situation distressed retired Army Maj. Gen. Bill Branson. They are determined to see that these veterans were provided dignified and honorable burials, which were earned through selfless dedication in our country’s time of need.
Dignity Memorial® funeral and cemetery providers are honored to administer the Homeless Veterans Funeral Program in selected cities across the nation. In partnership with the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Veterans Administration, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, local veterans organizations, medical examiners, coroners, and veterans advocates, Dignity Memorial® funeral and cemetery providers help to ensure that eligible veterans receive the honors in death that their service in life merited.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs provides eligible veterans with opening and closing of the gravesite, a grave liner, a headstone or marker, a graveside ceremony and burial in a National Cemetery. Participating Dignity Memorial® funeral directors provide transportation, preparation, clothing, and casket.
The national program operates 16 chapters across the United States and has performed more than 360 burial services since its start five years ago. It is operated as a partnership of Dignity Memorial, a network of funeral homes and the Department of Veterans Affairs, along with several other local and state agencies.
Retired Army Maj. Gen. Bill Branson, a former funeral industry executive from Missouri, co-founded the program when he heard stories of veterans who were buried in unmarked graves because they were homeless or their families didn’t have any money, “We have a lot of highly decorated veterans who aren’t getting any kind of service,” Branson said.
“When death occurs, there’s no one to really sort them out and offer any kind of assistance.”
Dignity Memorial Sponsored Community Outreach Program 1-800-DIGNITY (1-800-344-6489)
Posted on August 18th, 2007 by jill
Filed under: Homeless Veterans
