With Veterans Day right around the corner, it’s of the utmost importance to acknowledge and respect the sacrifice that veterans have made for our country.
Veterans are entitled to many benefits and programs from the federal government. Those benefits include free burial programs and funeral assistance for both veterans and their families as a way of paying respect and appreciation for their service to our nation.
If the Veteran’s death is service connected, the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, or the VA, will pay a burial allowance up to $2,000.
The VA also will pay the cost of transporting the remains of a service-disabled Veteran to the national cemetery nearest the home of the deceased that has available gravesites. In such cases, the person who bore the veteran’s burial expenses may claim reimbursement from VA.
The VA will pay a $300 burial and funeral expense allowance for Veterans who, at time of death, were entitled to receive pension or compensation or would have been entitled to compensation but for receipt of military retirement pay.
Burial benefits available include a gravesite in any of the 131 national cemeteries with available space, opening and closing of the grave, perpetual care, a government headstone or marker, a burial flag, and a Presidential Memorial Certificate, at no cost to the family.
Some Veterans may also be eligible for burial allowances, flat rate monetary benefits that are paid for an eligible veteran's burial and funeral costs.
Cremated remains are buried in national cemeteries in the same manner and with the same honors as casketed remains.
Burial benefits available for spouses and dependents buried in a national cemetery include burial with the Veteran, perpetual care, and the spouse or dependents name and date of birth and death inscribed on the Veteran’s headstone, at no cost to the family. Eligible spouses and dependents may be buried, even if they predecease the Veteran.
Burial benefits available for Veterans buried in a private cemetery include a government headstone or marker, a burial flag, and a Presidential Memorial Certificate, at no cost to the family.
Learn more about eligibility for death benefits, the VA, and burial expenses for Veterans by visiting Stuhr Funeral Home’s website.
J. Henry Stuhr extends a grateful thanks to American Veterans for their patriotism, love of our country and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.
J. Henry Stuhr can assist families of Veterans and retirees by requesting funeral honors and by obtaining the benefits outlined below, when eligible, which are provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs. All families interested will need to provide the correct discharge papers, known as a DD214 form, to confirm eligibility.
Stuhr Funeral Home, a trusted name in funeral services for more than 150 years, cares for families of those whose lives have ended. Stuhr Funeral Home is committed to providing quality arrangements to honor loved ones and family traditions. For more information about funeral services available, visit JHenryStuhr.com or call (843) 723-2524.
