Memorial Affairs

The Presidential Memorial Certificate (PMC) is a signature memento the National Cemetery Administration (NCA) provides to next of kin and friends of deceased veterans, and it was the idea of World War II Army veteran Benjamin B. Belfer, who was born on January 21, 1909.

The care and services VA provides to Veterans have improved over the years. This year, VA saw even more progress toward better serving Veterans. Here are five key ways VA is improving.

The Louisiana National Cemetery is adding 2,400 crypt spaces for casket burials; a cremation field with 300 burial sites; a committal shelter; an administration building/public information center; two memorial walls; four columbarium walls with 1,000 niches for above-ground cremation inurnments; and a main flag pole assembly area designed for ceremonies.

Thousands of volunteers laid wreaths at VA national cemeteries across the U.S. as part of National Wreaths Across America Day Dec. 14.

Dec. 13 is designated "National Day of the Horse" to highlight the contribution horses have made to the economy, history and character of the United States. 

Thousands of people attended Veterans Day events at 41 different cemeteries Nov. 8-11, held by the National Cemetery Administration.

When families of a deceased Veteran start planning burials at Quantico National Cemetery in Virginia, one of the program support assistants they may meet is a Veteran who chose to work for VA to serve fellow Veterans. Damion Jacobs enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1993. His assignments included Camp Pendleton, California, where he deployed three times, including to shut down humanitarian operations in Mogadishu, Somalia. Jacobs also spent a year protecting the fence line at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as an instructor at Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center in Bridgeport, California, and deployed to Iraq as an augmentee for the initial invasion in 2003. After his instructor assignment, Jacobs went back to Camp Pendleton, where he deployed twice. During his second deployment in 2006, an improvised explosive device detonated near Jacobs. He lost his leg below the knee.

The public can attend Veterans Day events at national cemeteries located throughout the U.S. from Nov. 8-11. Visitors can choose from the 41 different cemeteries who will host events.

Construction has begun on the development of an additional .82 acres at the Fayetteville National Cemetery and is scheduled for completion in late 2020.

The DFW National Cemetery provided a memorial service with full military funeral honors for three Veterans who donated their bodies for medical research.

With National Suicide Prevention Month coming to an end, we should remind ourselves that suicide prevention doesn’t end with the observation.

Fargo VA National Cemetery is now officially open and will serve as a burial ground for 30,000 Veterans and their families.