Big Four Veterans Service Organizations applaud VA & Crown Hill Cemetery on recent compromise

​INDIANAPOLIS - The Big Four veteran service organizations believe the announcement of a compromise and change to continue plans to build veteran columbaria in Indianapolis to honor our Hoosier veterans at historic Crown Hill Cemetery should certainly be applauded.

Our organizations would like to thank the Department of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration and Crown Hill Cemetery for their determination to continue this project to honor our Hoosier veterans. They have compromised and developed a solution to honor our Nation’s heroes while recognizing a community’s concerns to protect an old-growth forest at the original proposed site location.

“Honoring our nation’s veterans is our first priority as veteran organizations,” said Cmdr. Jerry Fivecoate, Disabled American Veterans, Department of Indiana. “We have been shown the commitment to honor our veterans by the VA and Crown Hill Cemetery to compromise in developing this needed memorial site.”

The "Big Four" VSOs

“We are pleased to see this resolved and can now maintain a focus on our core mission of honoring veterans at this new central Indiana location in the future,” said Cmdr. Jim May, The American Legion, Department of Indiana.

​The nearest location from Indianapolis to a national cemetery is in Marion, Ind., 85 miles northeast. The next closest veteran dedicated space is the state operated Indiana Veterans Memorial Cemetery located in Madison, Ind., 100 miles southeast of Indianapolis.

“It is crucial to have locations throughout Indiana area to honor our veterans and meet the needs of their families who will continue to visit these memorial sites in honor, mourning and remembrance of those veterans,” said Jerry Blake, VFW State Commander.

Nearly 500,000 veterans live in Indiana, and with an overall population of nearly 6.5 million, veterans comprise approximately 7.6 percent of the population of the state. Indianapolis is second only to Washington D.C. in monuments and memorials dedicated to our Nation’s veterans and dedicates more area to veterans than any other U.S. city.

“The contribution to the military over the years has been robust. From war, to state emergencies, and complex training in preparation of both, hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers have shown great service to the state and nation,” said Cmdr. Randy Rouse, AMVETS, Department of Indiana.

All of the Big Four organization leaders agreed having veteran memorial columbaria located in Indianapolis is a victory for all citizens of Indiana and especially for veterans and their families.
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According to a press release sent out by the VA, the Veterans Affairs and Crown Hill Cemetery entered an agreement to begin the process of surveying the adjacent property located at the corner of West 42nd Street and Clarendon Road for development. Once initial preparations have completed, the community will be kept informed and involved on the overall project as the process develops.