Spokane County: The Washington State Veterans Cemetery in Medical Lake will receive the cremated remains of 28 unclaimed veterans on August 30, 2017.
The Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs Cemetery staff partners with the Washington State Missing in America Project coordinators, Patriot Guard and Combat Vet Riders throughout the state and across the panhandle of Idaho to locate, positively identify, and inter eligible veterans and spouses through this initiative. These organizations work tirelessly throughout the year, contacting county coroners, medical examiners and funeral homes to locate unclaimed decedents eligible for burial in a veterans cemetery. Once identified, the logistics of claiming and coordinating a ride to the state’s Veterans Cemetery in Medical Lake begins.
Veteran riders from across the states will converge in Ritzville, WA on August 30 to make the final 50 mile trek in unison. The ride is expected to arrive at the Cemetery at 2pm where the cremains will be turned over to the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs for interment. These individuals will be placed in their final resting place with full military honors in a community interment service at a later date. This service is open to the media and the public.
The Washington State Veterans Cemetery is open to the public 7 days a week, from 8am to sunset. Interments are held Monday through Friday and are scheduled by contacting the cemetery staff. For additional information regarding the ride and the interment service please contact the cemetery at 509-299-6280 or visit www.dva.wa.gov/Cemetery .