Arlington's sweep of gravesite mementos distresses families of fallen

[Pokulski-Blatz]

The whole thing is a living monument, man. None of the graves are less sacred than others. It just isn't reasonable to think the stuff you leave in a cemetery is going to stay there very long, aside from flowers. Hell, I bet a lot if it just blows all over the place, and is hard to keep to the right grave in the first place.

I have typed no less than 4 responses now but can't find a good way to put my thoughts into words.

Just a FYI, flowers are the first thing to go. I am talking about medals, dog tags, a pair of boots, coins, rocks, ect. Not papers and things easily blown around. Those need to stay for a while.

Some of those graves are less sacred IMO.

The men and women that died protecting our homeland are a cut above those that gave lesser sacrifice. That is not to say they were better people than the others buried in Any national cemetery, just that the sacrifice they made makes them a bit more special.

[YALE]

It became a living monument to those that died, I don't give a shit how hard the grass is to cut. They should have let more time pass (5-10 years) and gradually cleaned up allowing time for family members to collect the mementos they left.

I fucking hate that I can't leave anything of consequence at Mike's grave without it being scooped up in a few weeks time.

The whole thing is a living monument, man. None of the graves are less sacred than others. It just isn't reasonable to think the stuff you leave in a cemetery is going to stay there very long, aside from flowers. Hell, I bet a lot if it just blows all over the place, and is hard to keep to the right grave in the first place.

[Forever_frost]

It became a living monument to those that died, I don't give a shit how hard the grass is to cut. They should have let more time pass (5-10 years) and gradually cleaned up allowing time for family members to collect the mementos they left.

I fucking hate that I can't leave anything of consequence at Mike's grave without it being scooped up in a few weeks time.

Exactly. Every one of those headstones represent someone who made the ultimate sacrifice so that others may live. The fucking groundskeepers can use a weed eater if they can't use a lawn mower

[Pokulski-Blatz]

I bet it's a pain in the dick to try and cut the grass around all that mess. It's pretty understandable that they'd want to keep it clean, but they should probably have attempted a heads-up, since they know who's buried there. A quick one-page letter could've let next of kin know.

It became a living monument to those that died, I don't give a shit how hard the grass is to cut. They should have let more time pass (5-10 years) and gradually cleaned up allowing time for family members to collect the mementos they left.

I fucking hate that I can't leave anything of consequence at Mike's grave without it being scooped up in a few weeks time.

[YALE]

I bet it's a pain in the dick to try and cut the grass around all that mess. It's pretty understandable that they'd want to keep it clean, but they should probably have attempted a heads-up, since they know who's buried there. A quick one-page letter could've let next of kin know.

[JP135]

I really don't understand being buried. But whatever floats your boat.

Then why did you feel the need to post a reply. I don't really get quantum physics or chaos theory, which is why I don't post on threads related thereto. Get it?

[Forever_frost]

Exactly. It's not about you but about your sacrifice for the nation and honoring that and your family name in the long line of warriors that fell to keep the country safe.

[Pokulski-Blatz]

I really don't understand being buried. But whatever floats your boat.

Being laid to rest in a military cemetery is an honor.

[UserX]

I really don't understand being buried. But whatever floats your boat.

[Forever_frost]

Shortly after her first child arrived in 2010, Ami Neiberger-Miller took one of her birth announcements over to Arlington Cemetery and carefully placed it next to the headstone of her brother, Army Spc. Christopher Neiberger, who was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq in 2007.

She is one of thousands of family members who for years have made Arlington Cemetery’s Section 60, where the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are buried, a vibrant and heart-wrenching memorial to the fallen, with grave stones adorned with laminated photos, love letters, small stones, children’s drawings, occasionally a bottle of whiskey and other personal mementos.

Now, however, cemetery officials are beginning to transform Section 60 into the same kind of pristine resting place where older veterans are buried, where the rows of white headstones are stripped bare with few if any signs of recent visitors.

The cemetery in August stepped up enforcement of a written policy to remove items left at the grave sites, a rule that was consciously overlooked in Section 60 for years.

It’s proven controversial, as many families were deeply troubled to know that cemetery workers were conducting weekly sweeps to remove all items other than fresh flowers.

“It’s very personal to be able to leave an object at a grave site. It helps them to feel connected to their loved one and it helps them to leave the cemetery happy and go on with their new life,” said Neiberger-Miller, who works with the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, which provides support to family members of deceased troops.

Cemetery officials met with family members Oct. 6 and later agreed to permit small photographs and “handcrafted items not affixed to the headstones” and also to scale back the weekly sweep to once every two weeks.

“The Advisory Committee on Arlington National Cemetery is wrestling with these issues as they develop and recommend a permanent policy,” said Jennifer Lynch, a spokeswoman for the cemetery.

“The fact is that Arlington National Cemetery is not the Vietnam War Memorial or the WWII memorial — it is a functioning cemetery, and we must remain true to that mission. But we recognize the special place Section 60 holds for so many families, and are doing the best we can to preserve the memories of the fallen. In the interim, the advisory committee recommended that the cemetery make an effort to improve upkeep, consistent with longstanding cemetery policy. We are abiding by that recommendation,” Lynch said.

Many of the removed mementos are discarded, but the Army, which officially runs the cemetery, has been collecting some of them for storage at Fort Belvoir in Virginia. More than 20,000 items were selected for storage “based on the items unusual, artistic or historical value to the service member at whose grave site the memento was left,” according to the Army.

http://www.armytimes.com/article/20131010/NEWS05/310100028/Arlington-s-sweep-gravesite-mementos-distresses-families-fallen