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VA National Cemeteries

Omaha National Cemetery burial schedule and eligibility

Omaha, Nebraska · VA national cemetery

Address, hours, directions and contact details: Omaha National Cemetery.

VeteranFunerals Editorial·3 min read·May 1, 2026·Facts checked

You can look up burials at Omaha National Cemetery on VA's daily burial schedule, which lists the committal services families have agreed to publish. Veterans who were not dishonorably discharged can be buried here, and so can their spouses and some dependent children. To schedule a burial, you or the funeral director call VA's National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117.

History of Omaha National Cemetery

The Department of Veterans Affairs purchased the property in 2012 for $6.2 million.

The Dedication Ceremony took place on August 5, 2016 and the first interments took place on September 27, 2016.

Notable veterans buried at Omaha National Cemetery

The National Cemetery Administration lists these people of note at Omaha National Cemetery, with section and site where it has them.

  • ​​Missourian Melvin Carl Anderson was born in 1912 and by 1930 his family moved to Omaha, NE. When the United States entered World War II, he enlisted in the army. In November 1944, Sergeant Anderson was part of Co. C, 803rd Tank Destroyer Battalion, supporting the fighting near Grosshau, Germany. Two tank destroyers and six tanks were destroyed, including Anderson's. On December 21, 1944, Anderson was categorized as killed in action and his name was inscribed on the Wall of the Missing, Netherlands American Cemetery. He was awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, posthumously. U.S. investigators later found the remnants of a tank destroyer near Grosshau; it contained unknown remains that were interred at Rhone American Cemetery. New DNA technologies have allowed the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency to identify remains such as those of Anderson. He was reburied in Omaha National Cemetery on October 12, 2018 (Section 3, Site 299).
  • Born in 1925, Jean Annette Briggs grew up in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk County, England. One of three girls, she was a talented artist who attended school in Cambridge. In 1943, at 18, she joined the Royal Navy and her family believed she drove a bus during World War II. Briggs actually operated a BOMBE machine, used to decode German military messages, and worked for master codebreaker Alan Turing. The secret ULTRA project cracked Germany's ENIGMA code. Briggs married U.S. Army Air Corps pilot John Watters (1917–2018) after the war. He flew B-17s, and later the U.S. Air Force colonel served in Korea and Vietnam. The couple raised six children in Bellevue, NE. Jean Briggs Watters died September 15, 2018, and was buried with British military honors. She is interred with her husband in Omaha National Cemetery (Section 3, Site 253).
  • Wilfred Louis Ebel (1930–2018) was the fifth director of what is now the National Cemetery Administration, from 1987–1989. The Nebraskan served in the U.S. Army during the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. Ebel received military commendations including the Legion of Merit and Distinguished Service, and he was inducted into the Senior Army Reserve Commanders Association Hall of Fame in 1995. As a civilian, he held appointments in the Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Bush administrations. The Memorial Affairs program at VA became the National Cemetery System during his tenure. Ebel oversaw the development of Florida and Fort Mitchell (AL) national cemeteries, transfer of a state veteran cemetery into the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona, and the opening of three state cemeteries. He remained connected to NCA until his death. Ebel died July 3, 2018, and is buried in Omaha National Cemetery (Section 1, Site 854).

Visiting hours at Omaha National Cemetery

Visitation Hours: Open daily from sunrise to sunset. Office Hours: Monday thru Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. VA will continue its practice of honoring special requests for weekend burials for religious purposes, in cases of service members killed in action and on at least one day of any three-day Federal holiday weekend at all open VA national cemeteries.

Who can be buried at Omaha National Cemetery?

VA national cemeteries accept a veteran who didn't receive a dishonorable discharge, a service member who died on active duty or in training, the veteran's spouse or surviving spouse (even if they remarried), and minor or, in some cases, unmarried adult dependent children. National Guard and Reserve members qualify under narrower rules. You can ask VA for a pre-need eligibility decision in advance; it does not reserve a gravesite.

What does burial here include at no cost?

  • A gravesite in any VA national cemetery with available space
  • Opening and closing of the grave
  • A government-provided burial liner
  • A government-provided headstone or marker
  • Perpetual care of the gravesite

Veterans also receive a burial flag, a Presidential Memorial Certificate (presented to the next of kin at the burial) and military funeral honors, which include the playing of Taps and two uniformed service members who present the flag. The committal service is held at a committal shelter, not at the grave, and lasts about 20 minutes. National cemeteries have no viewing facilities, so the funeral itself is held elsewhere.

How do you schedule a burial at Omaha National Cemetery?

  1. Gather the veteran's DD214 or other discharge papers, and the deceased's details (Social Security number, dates of birth and death, relationship to the veteran).
  2. Fax the discharge papers to the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 866-900-6417, or email them to [email protected] with the deceased's name in the subject line.
  3. You or the funeral director call 800-535-1117 (Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET) to request Omaha National Cemetery and a date. National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday.

Where is the Omaha National Cemetery burial schedule?

VA posts a daily burial schedule for every national cemetery. Search it for Omaha National Cemetery to see the committal services planned there. It only lists burials whose families agreed to publish them. To change or cancel a burial that's already scheduled, contact Omaha National Cemetery directly at 402-253-3949.

Headstone, flag and burial allowance

  • Government headstone or marker: tell the scheduling office which headstone, marker, niche cover or medallion you want when you schedule the burial.
  • Burial flag: VA Form 27-2008.
  • Burial allowance: For a non-service-connected death on or after October 1, 2026, VA pays up to $1,032 toward burial and funeral costs and $1,032 for a plot; for a service-connected death on or after September 11, 2001, the burial allowance is up to $2,000. Claim it with VA Form 21P-530EZ. All benefits

After the funeral: survivor benefits and the estate

A surviving spouse, child or parent may qualify for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC), a tax-free monthly VA benefit, for example when the death was service connected (VA Form 21P-534EZ). The veteran's estate is settled under Nebraska law; our sister site ProbateUS explains how probate works in Nebraska and lists each county's probate court. For the rest of the paperwork, from Social Security to bank accounts, DeathUS has a step-by-step checklist of what to do when someone dies.

Funeral homes near Omaha National Cemetery

A funeral director usually arranges the burial with the cemetery. These are the closest funeral homes by straight-line distance. Each one links to its full listing on FuneralUS, our funeral home directory.

  1. 4.1 mi from the cemetery
  2. 4.2 mi from the cemetery
  3. 5.4 mi from the cemetery
  4. 5.5 mi from the cemetery
  5. 6.5 mi from the cemetery
  6. 6.6 mi from the cemetery

Search all funeral homes by ZIP on FuneralUS

FAQ

Questions about burial at Omaha National Cemetery

  • Is burial at Omaha National Cemetery free?

    Yes, for eligible veterans, spouses and dependent children. VA provides the gravesite, opening and closing of the grave, a burial liner, a headstone or marker, and perpetual care at no cost. The funeral home's services, such as transport and any service before the burial, are arranged and paid for separately.

  • Can I reserve a gravesite at Omaha National Cemetery in advance?

    No. You can ask VA for a pre-need eligibility decision before a death, but VA says the decision letter doesn't name a cemetery or gravesite, because neither can be reserved in advance.

  • How do I schedule a burial at Omaha National Cemetery?

    Fax the veteran's discharge papers to 866-900-6417 or email them to [email protected]. Then you or the funeral director call the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117 (Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET). National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday.

  • Where can I see the burial schedule for Omaha National Cemetery?

    On VA's daily burial schedule at https://www.cem.va.gov/cem/dailyburialschedule/. It covers every national cemetery, but it only lists burials whose families agreed to publish them.

  • Are military funeral honors provided at Omaha National Cemetery?

    Yes, if you ask for them. Your funeral director, a Veterans Service Organization or the cemetery staff can arrange them. At minimum, two uniformed service members fold and present the burial flag at the committal shelter, and Taps is played.

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