On this Memorial Day it seems fitting to write about the new veterans’ cemetery slated for southeastern Pennsylvania. The VA’s preferred location is in Bucks County and there is land available but, as always in political matters, something is jamming up the works. But, more on that later.
First some background. There are currently three national veterans’ cemeteries in Pennsylvania. The one in Philadelphia (13.3 acres) is not taking any new internments, though family members of veterans already buried there may be added to the same plot. The Indiantown Gap National Cemetery (677 acres, 25 miles northeast of Harrisburg) and the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies (292 acres, near Pittsburgh, opened in 2005) are still accepting internments but that is a long way for those in the southeastern part of the state to go to visit their deceased family members. There is a state veterans’ cemetery in Erie, The Pennsylvania Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Home Cemetery, but that also is a long way away. (see http://www.cem.va.gov/CEM/cems/listcem.asp for more information)
Why are these cemeteries important? For one thing it pays a final honor to those who served in our country’s military. There are also other reasons. From the VA’s website (http://www.cem.va.gov/cem/bbene/bbenenat.asp) we find this:
Burial benefits available include a gravesite in any of our 125 national cemeteries with available space, opening and closing of the grave, perpetual care, a Government headstone or marker, a burial flag, and a Presidential Memorial Certificate, at no cost to the family. Some veterans may also be eligible for Burial Allowances. Cremated remains are buried or inurned in national cemeteries in the same manner and with the same honors as casketed remains.
Burial benefits available for spouses and dependents buried in a national cemetery include burial with the veteran, perpetual care, and the spouse or dependents name and date of birth and death will be inscribed on the veteran’s headstone, at no cost to the family.
The VA also spells out eligibility (http://www.cem.va.gov/cem/bbene/eligible.asp). Those who chose to be buried in a private cemetery can receive a headstone and burial flag. There are some conditions that would allow for a burial allowance.
We tend to think of veterans cemeteries as places for those in their later years, but Bucks County has lost four soldiers in Iraq in as many weeks this May. Those and other families in the same tragic situation might like to have a place to bury their sons and husbands and for children to visit their fathers’ graves close to home. There are other circumstances in which veterans might seek out a veterans’ cemetery.
A good friend of mine died some years ago. He had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and had a year or so to get his affairs in order, researching estates and related matters to ensure the most benefit for his minor children. As a veteran he was eligible to be, and elected to be, buried in a veterans’ cemetery; space was available in one near where they lived so they could visit his grave easily if they chose, and more of his estate could go to their college educations. My former stepbrother, who was making a career of the Air Force, died when he was 29. He had been partially or fully supporting his mother and there wasn’t much left over for burial. Fortunately there was a veterans’ cemetery near where she lived and where he grew up. He was buried there.
Veterans in southeastern Pennsylvania who wish to be buried in a veterans’ cemetery currently have to choose either the Harrisburg or Pittsburgh area, a long way for their families to visit. The VA has noted this and approved a cemetery for this area, as noted on their website:
The National Cemetery Act of 2003 authorizes VA to establish new national cemeteries to serve veterans in the areas of Bakersfield, Calif.; Birmingham, Ala.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Sarasota County, Fla.; southeastern Pennsylvania; and Columbia-Greenville, S.C. All six areas have veteran populations exceeding 170,000, which is the threshold VA has established for new national cemeteries.
You might think that in an area as developed as southeastern Pennsylvania there wouldn’t be enough unused space to find several hundred acres available but that’s not true. There are two sites competing for the cemetery.
The VA has said it would like 200 contiguous acres for the new cemetery. They have found such a plot in Upper Makefield Township, Bucks County; it is part of an area called the Dolington Tract. The VA announced in January, 2006, that it would buy 200 acres of Dolington from Toll Brothers, who had hoped to build on it.. The area is near I-95 for ease of travel in the region and according to Dan Fraley, director of Veterans Affairs for Bucks County, there are 60,000 veterans in Bucks (Katalinas, 5/18). Toll agreed to sell the land to the VA in return for a zoning ordinance (see discussion of this at the April, 2006 Upper Makefield Board of Supervisors meeting) that would allow them to build 80 houses on one nearby tract of land and 90 on another, known as the Melsky tract, currently owned by the Council Rock School District. Here is where it gets sticky. Council Rock isn’t sure it wants to sell the Melsky tract (Peterson, 5/18). Last week at a Council Rock School Board meeting the board voted to “subtmit revisions made to a previous counterproposal regarding the sale…” (Gentry, 5/25). Toll has made the sale of Dolington to the VA for the cemetery contingent on the purchase of Melsky (Hellyer 5/15). So, no Melsky, no Dolington, no cemetery for Bucks.
Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-08) has said he hopes the cemetery can be built on the Dolington tract. In an editorial in the Intelligencer on May 23 he writes in part:
As your congressman I am cognizant of my role as an advocate but remain respectful of the role of local government in settling this matter. I remain hopeful, as this is still the preferred site, not just for those in Bucks County but to the VA. Dolington was always the first choice.
He also points out the neighboring Wrightstown has agreed to set aside land for future use of Council Rock if needed.
However, the VA, while still preferring Dolington has begun to look at other options. A smaller tract, 173 (or 186 depending on the source) acres, is available in Chester County. That area was formerly the home of a hospital and buildings on it would need to be demolished first. Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-06) has been advocating for the VA to consider the Pennhurst site (Peterson, 5/18; Phucas, 5/13; Katalinas 5/18)
One hates to inject partisan politics into a situation like this but a quick check of www.opensecrets.org, shows that Bruce Toll has contributed to a number of Republican candidates and officials in Pennsylvania, including Jim Gerlach, and Mike Fitzpatrick, who proceeded Murphy as the 8th district congressman, as well as Jim Greenwood, whose retirement in the 8th district opened the door for Fitzpatrick.
I hope this matter can be settled quickly. If the VA prefers the Bucks County and it has the larger number of acres then it seems like the better choice to me. But, either way, it is a sad but true fact that people are dying daily and the least we can do is give them a place to be buried.
Sources:
Gentry, Kendra, “More changes delay Melsky tract,” Intelligencer 5/25/07
Hellyer, Joan, “Vets encourage board to sell Melsky tract,” Intelligencer 5/25/07
Katalinas, Theresa, “VA looking at alternatives,” Intelligencer 5/18/07
Murphy, Patrick, “Honor of national cemetery long overdue,” Intelligencer 5/23/07
Petersen, Nancy, “VA seeks a new tract for veterans cemetery,” Philadelphia Inquirer 5/18/07
Phucas, Keith, “Gerlach’s quest continues for veterans cemetery," Times Herlad 5/13/07
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