Giving a loved one who served their country military honors after their death is something that can be lovely. It can help honor their memory and it can help ensure that people know about their service. If you are making the arrangements for their services and want to be certain you can choose the best options, there are some tips that can help. Here are the things from funeral homes in Lowell, MA want you to remember.
One of the first things you want to remember is to gather all of the documentation that proves your loved one served in the military. This is a vital step because many providers will require to see this information. You may not know what to gather to do this, so it can be a good idea to reach out to an expert to help you. Funerary services providers have the experience planning these kinds of services, so they can help.
Another thing that you want to remember is that you can add mentions of their service to their obituary. Sometimes people forget to do this and it can be a mistake. Mention how long they served, which branch of the military they served in, and any honors they may have received. If you have a picture of your loved one in uniform, you can include that in the obituary, too. You can also mention if you are planning military honors at the service.
There are many ways to personalize military honor services for a loved one. At the actual service, you can arrange for a number of different military honors. The most popular is to have two active members folding the flag, and you can have someone playing “Taps” while that happens. You can also include gun salutes and other military music. If you would like to do these things for your loved one, be sure to let the VA know and to have help from directors of funeral homes so that they can ensure everything goes smoothly.
You can choose to have the person buried in a veterans cemetery. These are available throughout the country, letting you bury your loved one with honors. The VA will pay for these burials, too, so do keep that in mind. If this is something you would like to offer your loved one, it is crucial you let the VA know as soon as possible so that they can reserve a spot.
These are some of the most important things to remember when planning military service for a loved one. You do not want to have to stress over not having the right paperwork to prove their service, so be sure to ask experts to help you with it. You can learn more about all of this by reaching out to a Lowell, MA cremation services provider like us. We are ready to help you with the exact services you want to plan so do not hesitate to reach out to us. Contact us today or come visit us to learn more about the types of funerary services we offer.