Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) Integration
 
Timing and communication are critical to the successful inclusion of ANC ceremonies and services.  As soon as potential ANC involvement surfaces, the "local" RC / SC should send an email to anc@patriotguard.org indicating the ANC potential, and giving a link to the thread for the hero in question. This will allow the ANC team to initiate planning and be in the best position to act should the family wish. It is preferred that the "local" SC / RC remain the focal point for contacting the family and ascertaining interest in having PGR participate in any ANC ceremonies, as they are likely to be physically and emotionally closer to the family. As soon as it is available, send the CAO name and numbers to the ANC Team. Early contact by the  team is needed to assure smooth planning and integration.

The ANC RC team is well versed in the ins and outs of dealing with the special place that is ANC with its unique rules about flags and motorcycles, and limits on numbers of riders, and who does what, and special considerations when dealing with the Old Chapel and services at Ft. Myers.

The ANC RC team is prepared to work with you in two different roles , once you help get family permission for PGR presence. If you wish, we can carry the ANC mission to completion, making all the arrangements and making it all happen.  On the other hand if you or your team is actually coming to ANC, then we will work with you as facilitators, bringing our knowledge and contacts to bear to make your mission at ANC a success.  Together we will make it happen.

Whichever partnership is selected, the ANC team still relies on the "local" team to make the family contact and get a decision on yes/no for PGR involvement in any ANC ceremonies.  The holds true whether there are to be local services or not, and may be especially true relating to deceased Heroes from prior wars (more below).

                       REMEMBER, WE NEED TO KNOW AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, SO SEND THAT EMAIL ASAP!!

ANC Services, Variations

There is a wide variety of ANC service types and content available to the fallen Hero and his/her family.  And the PGR involvement with each type will vary, thus our need for timely information and contacts.  PGR involvement can include: flag honors during calling hours at a local funeral home; escort of the hero and family from the funeral home to ANC if we have LEO escort; flag honors at services at one of the chapels at Ft. Myers; escorting the family and hearse to the administration building at ANC and then to the gravesite; and more. Once the contact is made, the ANC team works with the CAO, and through the CAO, with the family to fit PGR's role to the ANC funeral plan for the fallen hero.

Heroes From Prior Wars

At ANC, and locally, this set of Heroes poses additional challenges. Whether they served in WWI or WWII or Korea or Nam or the other Mideast efforts, they deserve our attention, and honor. We have no "system" to notify us of their demise.  We rely on: local PGR folks seeing death notices, family members or friends being aware of PGR and asking for help, and other external forces bringing our attention to these Heroes. The ANC team relies on the local PGR folk to find these needs, get family permission, and then forwarding the information to anc@patriotguard.org so we might act.

Special POW/MIA Repatriation Considerations

The Pending Mission status for this category of fallen Heroes seems to last for a long time, especially relative to the fast pace of action for our fallen Heroes of the war on terror.  Families are dispersed, hard to locate, often only distantly related to the Hero, and often conflicted on what is the proper action to take in the best interests of the families and the Heroes. A lot of time has passed. Add to this cases where the remains have been identified, but cannot be separated for delivery to the individual families, making the decision process of joint burial and burial location even more difficult. The ANC team is working with all parties to keep on top of these Heroes, but they will take more time! ((Note: Too help identify these cases, their Thread Title will lead off with "POW/MIA", followed by the usual name, rank, branch of service, etc information))
 
 
The Official Website Of Arlington National Cemetery  - www.arlingtoncemetery.org   Our heroes have a beautiful resting place.

This website is full of information and history, photos, what the criteria is for burial in Arlington, etc. Also, on the front page you can find the daily funeral schedule.

There is a section of the website with a photo gallery of the funeral services for the different branches of the Military. Click here to see  Armed Service Funerals.

This is definitely worth the time to review.