The basic Military Funeral Honors (MFH) ceremony consists of the folding and presentation of the United States flag to the veterans' family and the playing of Taps. The ceremony is performed by a funeral honors detail consisting of at least two members of the Armed Forces.
The Funeral Honors rendered to you or your veteran will be determined by the status of the veteran. The type of Funeral Honors may be Full Military Honors, 7 Person Detail or a Standard Honors Team Detail.
At least one of the funeral honors detail will be from the Armed Force in which the deceased veteran served. Taps may be played by a bugler or, if a bugler is not available, by using a quality recorded version. Military Funeral Honor Teams may act as Pall Bearers if requested by the veteran/family.
Who is eligible for Military Funeral Honors?
- Military members on active duty or in the Selected Reserve.
- Former military members who served on active duty and departed under conditions other than dishonorable.
- Former military members who completed at least one term of enlistment or period of initial obligated service in the Selected Reserve and departed under conditions other than dishonorable.
- Former military members discharged from the Selected Reserve due to a disability incurred or aggravated in the line of duty.
Who is not eligible for Military Funeral Honors?
- Any person separated from the Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions or whose character of service results in a bar to veteran's benefits.
- Any person who was ordered to report to an induction station, but was not actually inducted into military service.
- Any person discharged from the Selected Reserve prior to completing one term of enlistment or period of initial obligated service for reasons other than a disability incurred or aggravated in the line of duty.
- Any person convicted of a Federal or State capital crime sentenced to death or life imprisonment.
How do I establish veteran eligibility?
The preferred method is the DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty. If the DD Form 214 is not available, any discharge document showing other than dishonorable service can be used. The DD Form 214 may be obtained by filling out a Standard Form 180 and sending it to:
National Personnel Records Center(NPRC)
9700 Page Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63132
The Standard Form 180 may be obtained from the National Records Center or via the following web site: http://www.archives.gov/research/order/standard-form-180.pdf
Is anyone else eligible to receive funeral honors?
Yes. Members of the Commissioned Officer Corps of the Public Health Service (PHS) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as members of a Uniformed Service, are also eligible to receive funeral honors.
For NOAA personnel, eligibility is established using NOAA Form 56-16, Report of Transfer or Discharge. If the family does not have a copy of the NOAA Form 56-16, it may by obtained by contacting the Chief, Officer Services Division, NOAA Commissioned Personnel Center at (301) 713-7715. or by writing:
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Commissioned Personnel Center
Chief, Officer Services Division (CPC1)
1315 East-West Highway, Room 12100
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910
For PHS personnel, funeral honors eligibility is established using PHS Form 1867, Statement of Service (equivalent to the DD Form 214). If the family does not have a copy of the Statement of Service, it may be obtained by contacting the Privacy Coordinator for the Commissioned Corps at (240) 453-6041 or writing:
Division of Commissioned Personnel/HRS/PSC
Attention: Privacy Act Coordinator
5600 Fishers Lane
4-36
Rockville, Maryland 20857
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I cannot express in words the gratitude my family holds for the exceptional service provided by Golden Gate staff during a challenging time. Their professionalism, coupled with very affordable prices, made a significant difference in our experience. The care and dignity with which they carried out my dad's services touched our hearts deeply – it was beyond what words can capture.
We truly felt like part of the Golden Gate family, and the love and respect shown to us made us appreciate them even more. Dr. Bell's outstanding work exemplifies the commitment to excellence that Golden Gate embodies. I have no doubt that they will continue to surprise the world with their exceptional service.
I wholeheartedly recommend Golden Gates to anyone in need of their services. Their willingness to go above and beyond, even caring for my dad's beloved dog after his passing, showcases their compassion and dedication. The grace and care shown to CoCo were nothing short of phenomenal.
Thank you, Golden Gate Staff, for your professionalism, compassion, and unwavering support. Your service is a beacon of light in difficult times, and I am grateful for the care you provided to my family.
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Dr. Bell and his dedicated staff for their unwavering support during a difficult time of bereavement for my family. Despite facing a challenging incident involving unauthorized transactions on our card, Dr. Bell and his team stood by us every step of the way, ensuring that the issue was resolved promptly.
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Thank you, Dr. Bell, for your outstanding support and exceptional service during our time of need. Your dedication and compassion have made a lasting impact on our family.
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me and my family made several phone calls to different funeral homes trying to have my mother cremated funeral homes was axing for $2000 for basic cremation we reached out to Golden Gates and what’s explaining that our mom had passed away it was unexpectedly and we did not have the funds to do a funeral after speaking to Mr. Bell he told us do not worry everything is going to be OK he stated to us the first thing is first your mom has been there three days let us go ahead and make the removal to put her in our care and soon as she came to the funeral home we was able to see her spend time with her all the things he did to prepare my mom to be decent for us to view her before Cremation was beyond our imagination your funeral home is amazing thank you guys so much for understanding our pain and giving us a price that was unbeatable $895 for direct cremation and he hand-delivered my mother back to us at our residence and the memorial gifts that he gave her a family Bring so much peace will be forever grateful thank you Mr. Bell and the Golden Gates family
When my family met Mr. Bell it was like he understood our pain no matter what the request was he made everything possible we are more than grateful of how he conducted business and from now if anything was to happen we definitely would call him thank you for all you did and how you treat us like somebody color plays no part at his funeral home I love how you treat everybody the same
Dr. Demario Bell The way he treated our family words cannot explain how grateful we are Mr. Bell treated our family like we was his family everything was affordable they did a phenomenal job everything that we ask for and plus more she looked it’s so beautiful all we had to do was bring clothes and he did everything else program was beautiful the way he conduct the service is breathtaking I recommend anyone to use this funeral home for the love ones Celebration of life
Golden Gates Funeral home did a wonderful job for my sister’s funeral I have worked many funerals and never seen a funeral done so well with compassion and love we the family of the late Candice Ellis thank you for your service in our time of need can y’all believe all that and Golden Gates was not expensive that package was 4500 for all that so affordable and from start to finish they treated us with love dignity and respect thank you again Golden Gates Funeral Home we thank you so much
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