Creston funeral director Dennis Kemle has added his voice in protesting what he says is inadequate financial help for the funerals of low-income Second World War veterans.
“Funeral directors are disturbed and concerned that the federal government is not providing adequate assistance for the burial of our country’s war veterans,” said Kemle, manager and part owner of Oliver Funeral Chapel.
“Each month, Canada loses approximately 1,700 World War II veterans. For decades, funding to ensure dignified funerals and burials for low-income war veterans has failed to cover the costs of these services. Currently, veterans’ families and Canadian funeral homes must make up the financial shortfall.”
The fight has been taken on by the Funeral Service Association of Canada (FSAC).
“It’s simply outrageous that we aren’t supporting families who have already sacrificed so much for their country,” said FSAC president Kent Milroy. “Enough is enough. These delays are hurting Canada’s brave veterans and their families.”
The delays Milroy refers to are federal government promises to address the issue. Those promises have yet to be delivered.
For more than a century, the federally funded Last Post Fund has provided assistance to families of low-income veterans. The fund helps cover funeral home and cemetery costs, including caskets, plots and headstones.
But rates for veteran funerals have remained unchanged for a decade. The amount issued by the Last Post Fund is $3,600, while the actual cost in 2011 is more than twice that.
“The Funeral Service Association of Canada has encouraged the federal government to do the right thing by veterans and their families for nearly ten years,” said Milroy. “It is a little thing to ask on behalf of those who sacrificed so much for their country.”
“Every year, Canadians gather at cenotaphs and war memorials to recite the words, ‘We shall remember them’, “Kemle said. “We urge the federal government to fulfill this promise. Provide the necessary funding to provide a dignified funeral to those who served with such distinction and bravery. It’s the least a grateful nation can do for our veterans and their families.”
