Camden County Memorial Day Service Set For Saturday

Camden County’s annual Memorial Day service is set for Saturday, May 27, 10 a.m.at the Camden County Veterans Cemetery at Harleigh. The ceremony will be held rain or shine.

“This is a time for us to come together to honor the men and women of our armed forces for their service, and to remember the sacrifices they made for our great country,” Camden County Freeholder Bill Moen, liaison to the Camden County Office of Veterans Affairs, said.

Following a request from local veterans who asked for a dedicated burial place close to home, the Camden County Veterans Ceremony was created in 2007.

“The Freeholder Board chose Harleigh as the location for this hallowed ground for its beauty and its historic significance. The eight-acre park-like setting is situated on a bluff overlooking the scenic Cooper River, on the border of Camden and Collingswood,” Moen said. “We have invested our resources into making this plot of land significant for eternity.”

Harleigh Cemetery was established in 1885. It is currently the final resting place of hundreds of veterans, including more than 300 who served in the Civil War. It is also the resting place of poet Walt Whitman, four United States Senators, and generations of Camden County families.

Those attending the ceremony should park at Riggs School located at 1656 Kaighn Avenue in Camden and use Harleigh’s Kaign Avenue Entrance, between the Airport Circle and Euclid Avenue.

The annual Memorial Day service is just one of the many programs and services that the Freeholder Board’s Office of Veterans Affairs provides to residents that served in the military and their family members. Each year, they also organize the county’s Veterans Day service at Cooper River Park and the Veterans Prayer Breakfast held in March.

The Veterans Affairs Office is located at 3 Collier Drive on the Camden County Lakeland Complex in Gloucester Township. They provide assistance and information on the services available to Camden County Veterans and their dependents.

Services provided by the Camden County Veterans Affairs Office include:

• Eligibility qualification for VA programs for Veterans and their families
• VA education programs
• VA home loan guarantee certificates and booklets
• Disability compensation for service disabled veterans
• VA pensions for low-income, non-service disabled war veterans and their widows
• Medical benefits for in-patient, out-patient and nursing home care
• Burial benefits including burial allowance and Veteran cemetery information
• Coordinate the Camden County Honor Guard for burial detail
• GI insurance and beneficiary claims
• Indemnity compensation to eligible survivors
• Discharge replacement and ordering service/medical records
• Ordering medals/awards and formally presenting when possible
• Assistance with drug and alcohol related problems
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder counseling
• Agent Orange information and referral
• Referral agent for social service agencies
• Veterans nursing home applications and qualifications
• Armed Forces recruiting information for all branches of service
• File for discharge upgrades, when warranted

For more information about services available to veterans, contact the Camden County Office of Veterans Affairs at 1-800-464-VETS.