4.5: National Cemetaries
Ensure that national cemeteries are maintained as shrines dedicated to preserving our Nation’s history, nurturing patriotism,
and honoring the service and sacrifice veterans have made.
Other Information:
Purpose and Outcomes: The purpose of this objective is to preserve our Nation’s history, nurture patriotism, and honor the
service and sacrifice of our Nation’s veterans by maintaining our national cemeteries as national shrines. Each national cemetery
exists as a national shrine and as such, serves as an expression of the appreciation and respect of a grateful Nation for
the service and sacrifice of veterans. Each national shrine provides an enduring memorial to this service, as well as a dignified
and respectful setting for a final resting place. National cemeteries also carry expectations of appearance that set them
apart from private cemeteries. Our Nation is committed to create and maintain these sites as national shrines, transcending
the provision of benefits to an individual. As national shrines, VA’s cemeteries serve a purpose that continues long after
burials have ceased and visits of families and loved ones have ended. A national shrine is a place of honor and memory that
declares to the visitor or family member who views it that within its majestic setting each and every veteran may find a sense
of serenity, of historic sacrifice, and nobility of purpose. Each visitor should depart feeling that the grounds, the gravesites,
and the environs of the national cemetery are a beautiful and awe-inspiring tribute to those who gave much to preserve our
Nation’s freedom and way of life. Strategies and Processes: To achieve this objective, VA must maintain occupied graves and
developed grounds in a manner befitting national shrines. Improvements in the appearance of burial grounds and historic structures
are also required for VA to fulfill its national shrine commitment. Extensive renovation of grounds, gravesites, and grave
markers will be undertaken at cemeteries where long-standing deferred maintenance needs exist. The Veterans Millennium Health
Care and Benefits Act, Public Law 106-117, directed VA to contract for an independent study to review various issues related
to the National Shrine Commitment and its focus on cemetery appearance. Volume 3 of the study, Cemetery Standards of Appearance,
was published in March 2002. Using the recommendations in the Volume 3 report and building on previous efforts, VA has established
standards and measures by which the National Cemetery Administration can determine the effectiveness and efficiency of its
operations. These standards and measures identify performance expectations in key operational processes such as interments,
grounds maintenance, and headstones and markers. Volume 2, National Shrine Commitment, which was published in August 2002,
identified the one-time repairs needed to ensure a dignified and respectful setting appropriate for each national cemetery
as well as recommendations to address deferred maintenance issues or preventive steps to minimize future maintenance costs.
VA will use the information in this report for addressing repair and maintenance needs at its national cemeteries. VA will
continue its partnerships with various civic organizations that allow volunteers to participate in maintaining the appearance
of national cemeteries. Under a joint venture with VA health care facilities, national cemeteries will continue to provide
therapeutic work opportunities to veterans receiving treatment in the Compensated Work Therapy/Veterans Industries (CWT/VI)
program. VA will continue to obtain feedback to ascertain how our customers and stakeholders perceive the appearance of national
cemeteries. Since 2001, the annual nationwide mail survey Survey of Satisfaction with National Cemeteries, has been VA’s primary
source of customer satisfaction data regarding national cemeteries. The survey collects data annually from family members
and funeral directors who have recently received services from a national cemetery. The information gathered is used in the
strategic planning process to develop additional strategies for improvement. VA will continue to conduct focus groups to collect
data on stakeholder expectations and their level of satisfaction with the appearance of national cemeteries. All national
cemeteries are important sites for patriotic and commemorative events. VA will continue to host ceremonies and memorial services
at national cemeteries to honor those who made the supreme sacrifice. To preserve our Nation’s history, VA will continue to
conduct educational tours and programs for schools and civic groups. VA will develop videos and other outreach products that
will be used as educational tools at national cemeteries. These outreach products, which will be available for viewing by
the general public, will provide a history of the National Cemetery Administration and of VA cemeteries from their inception
during the Civil War to the present. VA will also enhance its partnerships with various civic organizations to promote patriotism
and broaden public understanding and appreciation for the contributions of veterans in our Nation’s history. New opportunities
will be identified to educate the general public on veterans’ history and the role of national cemeteries. Since national
cemeteries were established in 1862, they have become the sites of memorials erected to recall distinctive heroics, group
burials, and related commemorations. These memorials range from modest blocks of stone, sundials, and tablets affixed to boulders
to more sophisticated obelisks and single soldiers on granite pedestals. In 2002, VA initiated its first comprehensive inventory
of memorials located in more than 100 national cemetery properties across the country. To complete this inventory, VA is partnering
with Save Outdoor Sculpture! (SOS!), a non-profit organization with more than 10 years of experience using volunteers to survey
public outdoor sculpture nationwide. In addition to gathering historical information about memorials, volunteers will document
materials, dimensions, appearance, evidence of damage, and setting. The inventory will help VA prioritize conservation needs
as well as develop a maintenance plan for all its memorials. When the project is complete, the inventory data will reside
at VA as well as being publicly accessible online through another SOS! partner, the Smithsonian American Art Museum. External
Factors: Maintaining the grounds, graves, and grave markers of national cemeteries as national shrines is influenced by many
different factors. As time goes by, cemeteries experience a variety of environmental changes that may require extensive maintenance.
Extremes in weather, such as excessive groundwater, rain, or drought, can result in or exacerbate sunken graves, sunken markers,
soiled markers, inferior turf cover, and weathering of columbaria.
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