The Department of Veterans Affairs recently awarded the Georgia Department of Veterans Service with grants for the expansion of the state’s two veterans memorial cemeteries, located in Glennville and Milledgeville.

Grant funds will be used to plan, prepare, and develop cemetery grounds to serve veterans and their families for the next 10 years. Both cemeteries will see enhancements to roadways, landscaping, irrigation and supporting infrastructure, and the placement of the Space Force emblem in the ceremonial area.

This is the first major expansion of the Georgia Veterans Memorial Cemetery (GVMC) in Glennville, which opened in November 2007. GVMC-Glennville received a total grant of $3,051,480 from VA to develop approximately 2 acres and add 920 pre-placed crypts.

The 42.6-acre cemetery has a potential capacity to provide a final resting place to over 40,000 veterans and their eligible family members. As of August 31, 2024, there are 2,580 veterans, spouses, and eligible dependents buried at GVMC-Glennville. Burials are composed of 1,662 casketed burials, 530 cremations in the columbarium, 380 inground cremations, and 8 memorial markers.

GVMC-Milledgeville will use the grant funds to undergo its next major expansion into Phase 4B of the cemetery’s master plan. Previously expanded in 2011 and 2018, this expansion will use grant funds of $5,135,900 to develop approximately 5 acres and add 1,680 pre-placed crypts and 548 inground burial spaces.

GVMC-Milledgeville, opened in 2001, is a 142-acre cemetery with the potential capacity to hold over 100,000 veterans and their eligible dependents when fully constructed. As of August 31, 2024, there are 5,579 veterans, spouses, and eligible dependents buried at GVMC-Milledgeville. The burials are composed of 3,673 casketed burials, 1,111 cremations in the columbarium, 764 inground cremations, and 31 burial markers.

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About GDVS:

The Georgia Department of Veterans Service (GDVS) is not part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, but is an agency of Georgia’s state government created for the purpose of advising, counseling, and assisting Georgia’s veterans and their families in receiving their rightful benefits under the vast and complex framework of veterans’ laws. The GDVS mission, to serve Georgia's veterans and their families in all matters pertaining to veterans benefits, falls into two basic tasks: informing veterans and their families about veterans’ benefits, and directly assisting and advising veterans and their families in securing the federal and state benefits to which they are entitled.

Veterans or their family members should contact their local field office to schedule an appointment. Locate a veterans service office near you at:  https://veterans.georgia.gov/field-offices.