VA Presents Check to N. CA Veterans Cemetery

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U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Presents Check to Northern California Veterans Cemetery

EVENT: The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (USDVA) will present a check to the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) for construction of 2000 columbaria niches at the Northern California Veterans Cemetery (NCVC).

“We are grateful to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for approving this grant to expand the number of burial niches at the Northern California Veterans Cemetery,” said Peter J. Gravett, CalVet Secretary. “This expansion in the number of columbaria will allow us to provide veterans and their families with a place of honor the memory of loved ones who gave so much to preserve our Nation’s freedoms and way of life.”

DATE: Tuesday, November 8, 2011

TIME: 8:00 a.m.

PLACE: Northern California Veterans Cemetery

11800 Gas Point Road

Igo, CA 96047

WHO: Peter J. Gravett, CalVet Secretary; Frank Salvas, Director USDVA State Cemetery Grant Program; Stephen Jorgensen, Administrator, Northern California Veterans Cemetery; veterans.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Jaime Arteaga, 916-657-9329 or Jaime.Arteaga@calvet.ca.gov.

BACKGROUND: CalVet applied for and was approved for a little more than $900,000 grant from the USDVA for construction of ten columbaria walls to provide 2,000 niches at the Northern California Veterans Cemetery. This is the first expansion of the NCVC since it was opened in 2005 and will provide columbaria niches for an estimated 10 years. The cemetery offers two options for the placement of cremated remains; columbaria above ground option marked by engraved niche covers and the in-ground burial option, which is a 4’x4’ gravesite marked with an upright granite headstone. Cremations represent 70% of the burials at NCVC.