By Andrew Hackmack
"It was not something that was typically done for the average enlisted soldier," Burns said. More than 20 years later, it's the norm. Congress passed a law which went into effect on Jan. 1, 2000 that guarantees any veteran a burial with military honors.
But with the military stretched thin, only two people can be guaranteed for a ceremony. A flag folding and presentation will be performed, along with the playing of Taps. This is where the United States Volunteers of America comes in, which has a local chapter based in Lynbrook.
Burns, a resident of Baldwin, belongs to the Oceanside VFW Auxiliary. Though he did not serve in the military himself, he is very interested in veterans' affairs because of his father's service. He believes it is important for every veteran to get the proper respect when they pass on.
In addition to the standard two people provided by the military, the United States Veterans can provide additional support at a burial. Other honors include a rifle team, color guard, chaplain and pallbearers. "There are a lot of other elements that happen in a full military service," Burns said. "It adds to the ceremony."
Col. Dwight Webster, of Valley Stream, has been involved with the military in some capacity for about three decades. He returned in April from his latest tour of duty in Iraq and about a month later joined the United States Volunteers.
"It seemed like it was a good thing to do," Webster said, adding that he wants to continue his involvement with the military.
With U.S. Armed Forces operating all over the world, there are few troops left at home to provide military honors for veterans. Webster said these men and women who served the country deserve a high level of appreciation. "Sometimes the only way to
demonstrate that is at a funeral," he said.
Lt. Col. Joe Schroder, of Malverne, is executive officer of the local chapter of United States Volunteers. He said that roughly 1,500 veterans from World War II die each day, making it hard to keep up with the demand for military honors. The size of roughly one combat brigade, or 3,000 soldiers, is assigned on the home front to perform these services. That leaves virtually no cushion to provide anything more than a standard two-man team.
With the assistance of the United States Volunteers, they can make a funeral service more personal and dignified, Schroder explained. While families of some veterans choose to have no military honors at all, others would like to take advantage of a full service.
"It makes a memorable event," Webster said. "That's the purpose."
Webster said that with each two-man team provided by the military, at least one will be from the service branch of that veteran. But even that can be a challenge. Locally, he said, there is no naval base and only one Air Force base way out east on Long Island.
Schroder, who is retired from the Army Reserves, is certified to train others to perform in a full military service. Training takes place at the VFW in Lynbrook and American Legion in Valley Stream. "To be able to do a funeral correctly, to look professional, there is a lot of training involved," he said.
More training sessions will be scheduled after the holidays, Schroder said. Additionally, members of the Long Island Funeral Directors Association will be invited to witness a demonstration of a full military service. Schroder said that it is important that funeral directors know this service is available locally for veterans. Burns, who has been involved with the organization for about two years, hopes to see more people join. World War II veterans are mostly in their 80s and 90s, and Korean War vets are not far behind.
For that reason, he said, there is a need for new recruits in the United States Volunteers to help give these soldiers the proper respect they deserve.
"There are a lot of deaths," he said, "and there are fewer of the veterans to help the veterans."
A special trip
In addition to his service with the United States Volunteers, Burns also recently visited Belgium to honor some fallen soldiers during the Battle of the Bulge.
Growing up, Burns said his father talked little about his service in the military. "Other than the fact that my father was in the 82nd Airborne, I didn't know a lot about what daddy did in the war," he said.
After his father's death, Burns began to learn more. His father belonged to the 80th Airborne, a little-known anti-aircraft battalion of a few hundred men within the 82nd Airborne. The elder Burns was a glider trooper.
Burns wanted to submit a picture to a book about the 82nd Airborne. He knew where his dad was in the picture, but did not want to send it in without identifying others. His journey to find out his father's comrades took him all the way to a group of surviving soldiers from the 80th battalion. For three years, he wrote their quarterly newsletter, chronicling the battalion's history from their basic training to the end of the war.
"Some of the survivors have gotten their history out," Burns said, explaining that the history was chronicled through the personal experiences of these men. "Having access to them, I was able to include their memoirs in the story."
Burns learned that another battalion within the 82nd Airborne, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regimen, had a monument in the town of Trois Ponts, Belgium, to honor its soldiers lost during the Battle of the Bulge. With the monument is a bronze plaque list the names of roughly 50 men from that infantry who were killed.
In learning about this, Burns discovered that there were four men from his father's 80th Airborne that also died fighting alongside soldiers from the 505th, but are not honored in that location. He collected money and secured permission from the Belgian government to install a stone and plaque adjacent to the existing monument to memorialize those four men. The dedication ceremony was held on Sept. 10.
At the ceremony, a folded flag was presented to the grandson of one of the four men honored on the plaque. Although it is 60 years after they made the ultimate sacrifice, Burns was proud to see those four men finally get the recognition they deserve.
He hopes to be able to continue that work at home through an organization dedicated solely to honoring the men and women who have served the United States.
