When news broke of improper burial practices at Arlington National Cemetery, Americans across the country reacted with anger and disbelief that our most hallowed grounds had been haphazardly managed. Those sentiments were on full public display here in Congress, especially so at the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee—the representative voice for veterans on Capitol Hill.
How could such negligence pervade Arlington, the final resting place for hundreds of thousands of men and women who have defended this nation? In June 2010, questions about the practices and procedures were finally answered—the blame falling squarely on decades-long mismanagement by senior cemetery leadership. Recommendations were made and implemented to ensure that history would not repeat itself at Arlington, and we have finally turned a corner this year under new management, with improvements to the process of burying our nation’s veterans occurring daily.
That will never excuse, however, the indescribable pain endured by the affected families of the fallen who had to experience, again, the interment of their loved ones as cemetery officials replaced and appropriately marked misplaced remains.
We must, therefore, remain vigilant in our oversight in order to prevent further mishaps at Arlington and throughout VA’s National Cemetery Administration (NCA).
Unfortunately, this past week, a recent audit of select veterans’ cemeteries revealed that more than 200 graves were marked with the wrong gravestone and eight veterans were buried in the wrong gravesites. We commend VA for discovering this problem and taking corrective actions; however, when dealing with something as sacred as tombs of our veterans, a 99% success rate does not cut it. Our veterans and their families deserve nothing less than 100% when it comes to honoring them for eternity.
The committee has therefore called on VA and the NCA to complete a full audit of over 3 million veterans’ gravesites at all 131 NCA cemeteries across the country. We are personally horrified these mistakes have occurred and will investigate how these problems happened in the first place. We will also take the appropriate steps to ensure VA puts the proper procedures and oversight in place so that this too never happens again.
When we examined what happened at Arlington, we learned that the system was fraught with poor record keeping, inept processes, and a general laziness—characteristics that do not uphold the respect and dignity owed our veterans. We cannot let that happen again at any one of veteran cemeteries.
Although the NCA has long upheld the highest of standards for caring for our veterans unparalleled in the VA system—which gives us comfort that they will overcome this—the families of those affected must be assured immediately that their loved one is at peace immediately.
We wish to extend our deepest sympathies to the families of those affected by these circumstances. Their loved ones fought for this country, and many lost their lives doing so. We must never forget that we owe a debt which can never be repaid—which is why we must strive for perfection on their behalf.
SOURCE: http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/politics/207879-our-national-cemetery-administration
How could such negligence pervade Arlington, the final resting place for hundreds of thousands of men and women who have defended this nation? In June 2010, questions about the practices and procedures were finally answered—the blame falling squarely on decades-long mismanagement by senior cemetery leadership. Recommendations were made and implemented to ensure that history would not repeat itself at Arlington, and we have finally turned a corner this year under new management, with improvements to the process of burying our nation’s veterans occurring daily.
That will never excuse, however, the indescribable pain endured by the affected families of the fallen who had to experience, again, the interment of their loved ones as cemetery officials replaced and appropriately marked misplaced remains.
We must, therefore, remain vigilant in our oversight in order to prevent further mishaps at Arlington and throughout VA’s National Cemetery Administration (NCA).
Unfortunately, this past week, a recent audit of select veterans’ cemeteries revealed that more than 200 graves were marked with the wrong gravestone and eight veterans were buried in the wrong gravesites. We commend VA for discovering this problem and taking corrective actions; however, when dealing with something as sacred as tombs of our veterans, a 99% success rate does not cut it. Our veterans and their families deserve nothing less than 100% when it comes to honoring them for eternity.
The committee has therefore called on VA and the NCA to complete a full audit of over 3 million veterans’ gravesites at all 131 NCA cemeteries across the country. We are personally horrified these mistakes have occurred and will investigate how these problems happened in the first place. We will also take the appropriate steps to ensure VA puts the proper procedures and oversight in place so that this too never happens again.
When we examined what happened at Arlington, we learned that the system was fraught with poor record keeping, inept processes, and a general laziness—characteristics that do not uphold the respect and dignity owed our veterans. We cannot let that happen again at any one of veteran cemeteries.
Although the NCA has long upheld the highest of standards for caring for our veterans unparalleled in the VA system—which gives us comfort that they will overcome this—the families of those affected must be assured immediately that their loved one is at peace immediately.
We wish to extend our deepest sympathies to the families of those affected by these circumstances. Their loved ones fought for this country, and many lost their lives doing so. We must never forget that we owe a debt which can never be repaid—which is why we must strive for perfection on their behalf.
SOURCE: http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/politics/207879-our-national-cemetery-administration
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