Merle Hay Funeral Home

Veteran services at Merle Hay Funeral Home

Veteran families in Des Moines, IA can turn to Merle Hay Funeral Home for honors and benefit coordination. In their own words: "Merle Hay Funeral Chapel assists veterans and their families with Veteran Administration paperwork, provides information regarding the Iowa Veteran Cemetery near Van Meter, Iowa, and offers guidance on available assistance for veterans in need. The Polk County Commission of Veteran Affairs provides up to $2,000 for funeral expenses for qualified veterans, spouses, or minor children." On-site amenities include merle hay chapel, sunset memorial chapel, and chapel hill gardens at merle hay cemetery, suited to flag presentation and honors ceremonies. Published pricing lists $5,130 for basic burial and $2,380 for direct cremation. Veterans may qualify for county or federal allowances toward these costs.

Veteran-related services offered include cremation, traditional burial, veteran services, cemetery services, and memorialization. Each service is coordinated with the family and, where applicable, with the deceased's last unit or branch honor detail.

On-site facilities of note include merle hay chapel, sunset memorial chapel, chapel hill gardens at merle hay cemetery, sunset memorial gardens cemetery, and on-site chapel. These spaces accommodate full military honors details, family gatherings before and after the service, and the placement of the United States flag during the visitation period.

Published pricing at Merle Hay Funeral Home: direct cremation from $2,380. That places direct cremation roughly 18% below the Iowa median ($2,905). Veterans who served on active duty for at least 24 months may qualify for VA burial allowance to offset funeral costs — this home accepts assignment of those benefits where eligible.

The nearest VA national cemetery is Iowa Veterans Cemetery in IA, approximately 15 miles from Merle Hay Funeral Home. Merle Hay Funeral Home can coordinate transport, scheduling with the cemetery's interment office, and the timing of military honors with the receiving committal shelter.

Iowa has approximately 577 licensed funeral homes serving its population, of which a subset specifically lists military funeral honors and VA benefits assistance among their services. Merle Hay Funeral Home is among them.

Frequently asked questions

What sets Merle Hay Funeral Home apart

• Locally owned and operated by Des Moines natives Blair Overton and Sara Bering.
• No charge for pre-planning consultations or pre-need plan fees; clients only pay for selected services.
• Owns and operates two cemeteries: Chapel Hill Gardens (on-site) and Sunset Memorial Gardens.
• Operates three distinct funeral entities: Merle Hay Chapel (full-service, renovated 2022, 150+ guests), Sunset Memorial Chapel (new 2021, 125 guests), and Brooks Funeral Care (budget-friendly, smaller venue for 75 guests, coordinates with external venues).
• Operates The Cremation Society of Iowa, noted as Iowa's oldest cremation society.
• Offers Spanish-speaking services.

Military & veteran services offered

Burial & cremation services

On-site facilities

Affiliations & specializations

Religious traditions & languages

Religious traditions accommodated: Christian (various denominations, including Catholic). Languages spoken at the home: English, Spanish.

How honors are coordinated

Military funeral honors are guaranteed at no cost for any veteran discharged under conditions other than dishonorable. The funeral home arranges the honors detail by contacting the deceased's last unit or the nearest active-duty installation of the appropriate branch and submitting the DD-214 to verify eligibility.

For requests less than 72 hours from service time, families can call the Department of Defense's expedited honors line at 1-877-MIL-HONR (1-877-645-4667). See the full honors protocol.