A Boy Scout’s Big Plan to Honor Veterans

The vast majority of people in the United States understand the commitment and sacrifice those that serve in our country’s military give both for  their nation and for their family.  It is something that we understand, but so many times we let it go unsaid.

16 year old Eagle Scout Joshua Katz wants to do something about that unsaid, inactivity part.  For the third year in a row, Katz and his fellow Boy Scouts who are members of Troop 337 from Melbourne, Florida and Troops 13 and 105 from Palm Beach County walked from grave to grave in Cape Canaveral Cemetery on Saturday placing custom made coins on the top of headstones as volunteers read the names of all 4,650 interred veterans in the cemetery.  You can read about it and see many pictures here.

Two years ago Katz did this for the first time and has since placed these coins on the monuments of every national cemetery in Florida.  He is making plans to expand into Georgia.

Much like Wreaths Across America at Christmas, each time a coin is placed on a monument, the name of the deceased is read aloud keeping that memory going.

Katz is hoping to get a national following soon so that this action can take place annually in all of the 136 cemeteries under the control of the Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration.

Funeral Director Daily take:  This is a great effort by an enterprising young man.  Have you ever thought about the positive public relations your funeral home could receive if you took on something like this locally?

This type of event does not have to be in a national cemetery to honor and remember the sacrifices of our veterans and their families.  You could lead a great community service project to place wreaths or coins on the monuments of all veterans in a particular cemetery annually.  Pick a cemetery, get a sponsor such as a Rotary Club, get some activism from a group like the Boy Scouts, and then help underwrite the costs.  I’m guessing that this could be a great community event that would bring pride to the area.

It doesn’t have to be with wreaths or coins and you can probably come up with better ideas than I can.  However, funeral homes can find some great goodwill by being the “hub” on the wheel and getting all of the “spokes” in the community connected for positive results.

Find your passion.  Find your project.  And, move forward with it to build a better community.  It is the American way!!!

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2 Comments

  1. Funeral Director Daily on September 19, 2018 at 12:00 pm

    Thanks Jim for your comment. Even though we don’t always hear about them, there are some great young people out there honoring America and our veterans for what they have stood for!!



  2. Jim Bauschke on September 19, 2018 at 8:57 am

    Wow! What a great idea; an idea that required creativity, courage, action, persistence, and fortitude. As a Veteran who worked at the U.S. Army Mortuary at Tan Son Nhut Airbase in Saigon, Vietnam, this makes my day. Seeing what all of us who worked there saw day after day, changes you. You can never unsee it. The honor these Boy Scouts are rendering to all who gave their lives to their country is a beautiful thing.



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