by Mark Butler

Created on: February 13, 2010

Taps.

The somber dirge invokes feeling of sadness in nearly everyone who hears it.  It has been that way since the Civil War when its creator wrote and first played it to honor the fallen dead.

 Today it is our final tribute to those who wore the cloth of our nation, the uniform of our great military.

Often, a family, knowing that their recently departed loved one was a veteran, will seek to have a military burial for their dearly departed.  In actuality it is really Military Funeral Honors if it is held outside of a major national veteran’s cemetery.

How does a family request Military Funeral Honors for their veteran?  The answer is surprisingly easy.

Let the funeral director know.  Every funeral director knows what needs to happen to make this final honor possible.  You will need to help the funeral director by supplying some vital documents and hopefully the veteran or his or her family members have these readily available.  For a member of the military this means a DD-214, the Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty. If the DD Form 214 is not available, any discharge document showing other than dishonorable service can be used.  This may very well be a Formal Discharge certificate that is given in addition to the DD-214 at time of discharge.  You will also need to let the funeral director know of your desire for Military Funeral Honors at least 48 hours prior to the event as the Department of Defense requires the time in order to dispatch active duty personnel to the site of the funeral.

So who is eligible for Military Funeral Honors?  The deceased must have been a veteran with a discharge that was not dishonorable, a military member on active duty or in the Selected Reserve, former military members who completed at least one term of enlistment or period of initial obligated service in the Selected Reserve and departed under conditions other than dishonorable and former military members discharged from the Selected Reserve due to a disability incurred or aggravated in the line of duty.

Additionally, a Commissioned Officer Corps of the Public Health Service (PHS) or National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as members of a Uniformed Service, are also eligible to receive Military Funeral Honors.  To establish proof of eligibility for these personnel the family will need to provide a PHS Form 1867, Statement of Service or a NOAA Form 56-16, Report of Transfer or Discharge, depending on the branch of service.

What are Military Funeral Honors?  The minimum that the family can expect is a flag folding ceremony, the presentation of the flag to a family member and the playing of Taps.  Due to a lack of buglers in the military, the playing of Taps may be done using an electronic recording.  The person presenting the flag will be a member of the same service as the veteran.  During this time of loss, the family should be aware that the Military Funeral Honors are provided at no cost to the family or funeral home.

Military Funeral Honors are the last honor that this nation pays to one of its citizen-soldiers that placed his life in the service of his or her country.  While it is no longer possible to have a military rifle squad show up for a rifle salute, there are many veterans organizations that will gladly provide a trained team to pay their last respects to one of their fallen comrades in arms.  To find out more about a rifle salute, contact your local veteran’s organizations.

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