Funeral detail

Yesterday I did my first funeral detail since we came back. The deceased had been a warrant officer/helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War with 26 years of service, so it was an 8-man detail.

I'd done plenty of funeral details before the deployment, but back then I was always attached to existing details from other companies -- I typically let the staff sergeant in charge of the detail arrange everything.

This time, however, I got to exercise a bit more leadership because I was the one coordinating things.

On Friday I got the notification by phone that there was a detail packet at the brigade headquarters that I had to pick up. I got it in the afternoon just before the end of the day, so I called the Casualty Assistance Office and arranged to pick up the bugle on Saturday morning.

During the CAO appointment, I also confirmed the pertinent details, such as the time and location of the funeral. I then called the staff sergeant and put him in charge of picking up the weapons, the blank ammunition, and picking up the government van.

Things went smoothly, and we left on Monday morning at about 0730. The drive was about two and a half hours, putting us as the funeral home about two hours before the service.

My crew was a bit nervous because they hadn't practiced with blanks beforehand, but the volleys went well. The best praise was from the servicemember's widow, "[He] would have loved to have seen this."

We finished at about 2:00, and went out to eat at Texas Land & Cattle. Our per diem allowance amounted to about $53 per person after tax and tip, so I told everyone to get appetizers and desserts if they wanted. Even so, we didn't even come close to maxing out our allowance. I was so full I didn't even eat dinner that night.

Funeral details can be a bit stressful -- there are no "redo's" -- but the compensation (day off of work and a hearty meal) is always worth it.