1.Q: Can my service member receive funeral honors?
A: Most likely, however we do need to verify honorable service in the US Army. To verify service, we need a document with the service member’s name on it, and the document must say ‘Honorable’, ‘Honorably’, or ‘General Discharge’ on the document.
2.Q: What documents can verify honorable service?
A: Unfortunately, there are too many documents to list all of them, however, instructions of what to look for on service documents can be found here.
3.Q: What if I can’t locate any service documents?
A: Most service members kept a copy of their records in a safe or filing cabinet. If you’ve looked through these and cannot locate it, you may be able to request verification of service through Veterans Affairs. Please see check our page on requesting service documents here.
4.Q: Can you locate my service member’s records?
A: No. Service member records are privileged and protected by several laws and policies. To protect military members’ privacy, we do not have access to any records that are not sent to us by family members or funeral homes.
5.Q: I prefer faxing documents; do I have to email them?
A: Email is highly preferred. It allows us to process the request faster, makes it harder to lose documents, and we can know where every request came from if we have questions, or something was incorrect on the documents. However, we can still receive faxes at 609-562-2139.
6.Q: Can I request funeral honors for a service member who was not in the Army?
A: Yes, however the Ft Dix CAC cannot process it. Please check for the appropriate assistance office for your service by clicking here.
7.Q: Do you work on first come first served basis?
A: No. We will work to process all honors requests regardless of the order they come in. We need 3 business days to process a request, preferably 5, to make sure documents are correct and coordinate with the honors teams, but sending the requests earlier than that will not give your request precedence.
8.Q: I can’t send my request in with 3 business days’ notice. What do I do?
A: All service members who served honorably are entitled to funeral honors. We will do our best to try to accommodate your timeline, but we can’t guarantee we will be able to process it in time for the service. However, funeral honors don’t have to be rendered at the funeral service. We can provide funeral honors at a later date and different location as well. In cases where you can’t provide 3 business days’ notice, this option is also available. Regardless of what you decide, we will work to accommodate your request.
9.Q: What do funeral honors entail?
A: Honors for veterans will consist of folding the US flag, presenting the flag to the next of kin, and playing taps. Honors for retirees will be the same but may also include a 21-gun salute. However, the funeral honors teams are responsible for large areas and the 21-gun salute requires a larger detail. In some cases, in order to provide funeral honors for every service member, a 21-gun salute may not be rendered.
10.Q: What if I don’t want everything that’s providing in funeral honors?
A: You can request for specific parts of the funeral honors to not be performed when honors are rendered. Please annotate that in the notes section of the request form and let the honors team know as well.
11.Q: Can you help with getting approval to buried in a veteran cemetery?
A: Unfortunately, we only process funeral honors requests. Each cemetery processes their own requests for internment and have different ways of verifying eligibility.
12.Q: Can I request funeral honors at a later date than the funeral service?
A: Yes. Every service member who serviced honorably is entitled to funeral honors, regardless of the timing. However, they are only entitled to it one time. If the funeral honors were rendered at the time of the funeral, then we cannot render them at a later date.