At Dancy Funeral Home, we consider it a profound honor to serve the families of veterans. Whether your loved one served in wartime or peace, at home or abroad, their sacrifice deserves to be recognized with care, dignity, and respect.
We’re here to help your family navigate the unique benefits and honors available to veterans — from flag presentation and military funeral honors to burial in a national or veterans’ cemetery. We work closely with the VA, local honor guards, and cemetery personnel to ensure every detail is handled with precision and reverence.
If your loved one served, we’ll make sure their farewell reflects the life they lived and the service they gave.
Military funeral honors are a formal way of recognizing a veteran’s service to our country. Provided at no cost to the family, these honors are available to eligible veterans regardless of rank or time served. They may be held at a funeral home, house of worship, cemetery, or other meaningful location.
At Dancy Funeral Home, we coordinate military honors on behalf of the family with the appropriate branch of service and any local veterans’ organizations. We work closely with the Department of Defense and local honor guards to ensure the ceremony is conducted with care, precision, and respect.
Military funeral honors may include:
These traditions are deeply meaningful, and we consider it a privilege to help carry them out for those who have served.
For services where the casket is present, families have a few meaningful options for displaying the United States flag:
Important to note:
We’ll work with you to honor your loved one’s service respectfully, and help coordinate floral, flag, and tribute arrangements in accordance with military guidelines.
Military members who served on active duty and received an honorable or general discharge
Were dishonorably discharged
Were convicted of certain criminal offenses
Were discharged under other than honorable conditions
At Dancy Funeral Home, we submit requests directly to the appropriate branch of the military on your behalf. Every request is time-sensitive and requires specific documentation, so the sooner we receive the required materials, the better we can ensure a seamless tribute.
Most branches require 48 to 72 hours of advance notice, so we ask that families provide the following as soon as possible:
This document confirms eligibility for honors. If you don’t have it, we can assist you in requesting a copy from the National Archives.
If you are preplanning, it’s extremely helpful to provide us with a clear, readable copy to keep on file.
If you’re not ready to share it yet, please store it in a safe, accessible place and make sure your family or funeral director knows where to find it.
Including the date, time, location, and whether the honors will take place at the funeral home, a house of worship, or the cemetery.
Each branch (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard) processes military honors separately. We’ll coordinate directly with the appropriate office once eligibility is verified.
The honor guard will present the American flag to the next of kin. We’ll confirm who this is in advance and ensure that all ceremonial elements are in place.
We handle all communications and arrangements with care, discretion, and respect. Your family’s role is to focus on remembering — we’ll take care of the rest.
Don’t worry — we can help.
The DD-214 (or other discharge documentation) is required to request military funeral honors and access veteran benefits. If this paperwork is missing, we can guide you through the process of obtaining a replacement through the National Archives or the appropriate branch of military records.
The veteran — or their next of kin — can request records:
Even if official records are not available, the VA may accept alternate sources of proof of service, such as:
To avoid delays at the time of death, we encourage veterans and their families to:
If a death has occurred and you don’t have access to the discharge paperwork, please contact us right away — we’ll help you begin the process.
In addition to military funeral honors, eligible veterans and their families may qualify for a range of burial benefits provided by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. These tributes help ensure that a veteran’s life and service are permanently honored, even after the ceremony has ended.
At Dancy Funeral Home, we assist with all related applications and requests. We prepare the necessary paperwork and guide families through the signature process to ensure everything is submitted correctly and without delay.
Common benefits include:
A ceremonial U.S. flag is provided at no cost to drape the casket or accompany an urn. This flag is later folded and presented to the next of kin during the service.
We complete the request form (VA Form 27-2008) and submit it on your behalf.
This engraved certificate, signed by the President of the United States, is a formal expression of the nation's gratitude. Families may request multiple copies.
We will handle the application (VA Form 40-0247) as part of our service.
Veterans are eligible for a government-issued headstone or grave marker for placement in either a national or private cemetery. If a headstone is already in place, the VA also offers a bronze medallion that can be affixed to existing markers.
We will help determine the appropriate option and complete the necessary forms to submit to your local cemetery.
In certain cases, surviving family members may qualify for a partial reimbursement of funeral and/or burial expenses through the VA. Eligibility depends on factors such as service-connected death, hospitalization at a VA facility, or other circumstances.
We will walk you through the process and explain what documentation is needed.
We know these benefits can feel overwhelming to navigate — especially during a time of loss. Our team is experienced in handling all aspects of the process and will ensure your loved one receives the recognition they deserve, with dignity and care.
Veterans and eligible family members may choose to be buried in a national or state veterans’ cemetery, where burial space, a government-issued marker, perpetual care, and military honors are provided at no cost. These cemeteries serve as permanent places of honor for those who have served our country.
At Dancy Funeral Home, we frequently coordinate services at several regional veterans’ cemeteries and manage all communication, documentation, and scheduling on your behalf.
Unlike most local cemeteries, where families typically choose the day and time of burial, veterans’ cemeteries are operated by government agencies and follow strict scheduling protocols. Once eligibility is confirmed and arrangements are in motion, the cemetery typically assigns the earliest available date and time based on availability.
We’ll work closely with you to coordinate transportation, service details, and military honors — and ensure that everything flows smoothly around the scheduled burial or inurnment.
Reserved for veterans with qualifying service or distinguished honors, Arlington National Cemetery is one of the nation’s most sacred burial grounds. Eligibility is more limited and includes:
We assist families through the application and eligibility review process and coordinate closely with Arlington staff to arrange interment or inurnment.
This nonprofit veterans’ cemetery serves families in North Jersey with a peaceful, well-maintained resting place in Sussex County. Opened in 2015, it provides burial or cremation inurnment for honorably discharged veterans and their eligible family members. This location is a strong local option for families seeking a closer alternative to state or national cemeteries.
Losing a loved one in active military service is a profound and deeply painful experience. We are here to support families during this time of shock and grief, and to coordinate the many details that accompany a military-arranged burial or memorial.
When a service member dies while on active duty — whether at home or abroad — military protocols and benefits differ from those for retired veterans. Planning involves coordination with multiple agencies and careful attention to the service member’s stated preferences.
Scheduling, location, and procedures will often follow military protocols first, with family preferences accommodated as much as possible
Service members complete a Record of Emergency Data (DD Form 93), which designates:
It’s important to know that this designation takes legal precedence — even over blood relatives or next of kin, if a different person is named. As funeral directors, we are legally and ethically required to follow the wishes and designations outlined in this form.
We will work closely with the assigned Casualty Assistance Officer, the authorized individual, and the family to coordinate services with compassion, clarity, and professionalism.
Whether your loved one served in wartime or peace, at home or abroad, their sacrifice deserves to be recognized with dignity, gratitude, and respect.
At Dancy Funeral Home, we’re proud to help veterans’ families navigate every step — from military funeral honors to VA paperwork, cemetery coordination, and memorial planning. We’ll take care of the details so you can focus on remembering.
Let us walk beside you.
