San Antonio’s Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery Veterans Day ceremony is once again facing the chopping block, and local veterans are pushing back. The proposed discontinuation would leave the city with only the smaller ceremony at San Antonio National Cemetery while officials weigh whether the annual observance is worth the cost and effort.
For the third consecutive year, the Department of Veterans Affairs is considering ending the Fort Sam event. Cemetery Director Gerald Lefler said the agency is seeking input from veteran service organizations and city officials before making a final decision, according to the San Antonio Report.
Fort Sam Houston is hardly a minor outpost on the local veterans calendar. More than 180,000 veterans and eligible family members are buried there, compared with roughly 3,000 at San Antonio National Cemetery, the Express-News reported when a similar cancellation fight erupted in 2024.
VA Has Tried To Consolidate The Ceremonies Before
In 2024, the VA cited low attendance and cost-cutting efforts as it proposed ending the Fort Sam ceremony and holding just one observance at San Antonio National Cemetery. After bipartisan pressure from San Antonio-area members of Congress, the agency reversed course for that year but did not promise the Fort Sam ceremony would continue indefinitely…