THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, September 7, 1994 TAG: 9409070487
SECTION: MILITARY NEWS PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BONNIE GOODSON AND ELIZABETH DURNING, VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF
VETERANS AFFAIRS
LENGTH: Medium: 51 lines
Construction is scheduled to begin next year on a new cemetery for veterans from throughout eastern Virginia.
The 122-acre cemetery in Amelia County will have 54,700 grave sites.
The need for a new cemetery has become increasingly apparent in recent years with the closing in 1993 of the Hampton National Cemetery to new burials.
Virginia's veterans now are served by the Arlington, Quantico and Culpeper National Cemeteries, but burial in Arlington is restricted and unavailable to most Virginia veterans.
The state Department of Veterans Affairs began looking into establishing a state veterans cemetery in 1993 by authorizing a preplanning study for the development of a cemetery in Amelia County.
The federal government would pay half the price of development and, under legislation approved this year, the state would pay the other half.
Congress has authorized payment of $150 to the state for each interment of an eligible veteran in a state veterans cemetery, reducing significantly Virginia's costs for operating and maintaining the cemetery.
The department chose the site because it is centrally located between the significant veterans populations in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads.
The cemetery will primarily serve an area within a 100-mile radius that includes Fredericksburg, Richmond, Newport News and Roanoke.
The estimated population living within 100 miles of the cemetery is 435,000 veterans. With an annual mortality rate of 10 percent, officials are anticipating that at least 1 to 2 percent will require interment in Amelia.
The cemetery will include traditional grave sites, sites for cremains, and other sites housed in columbaria. Guidelines to determine eligibility for burial will be established along with the development of the cemetery and these will be in accordance with federal guidelines.
For additional information regarding the progress of the state veterans cemetery, write to VDVA P.O. Box 809, Roanoke, Va. 24004, or call Elizabeth Durling at (703) 857-7104.
For information regarding veterans and dependent benefits and for assistance in filing claims write VDVA, Suite 211, 1216 Granby St., Norfolk, Va. 23510, or call (804) 683-8571. MEMO: Next month in Veterans' Corner: Persian Gulf war syndrome.
by CNB