LATHAM, N.Y. - New York Army and Air National Guard honor guards conducted military funerals for 12,019 families across New York as of Dec. 23, and expect to perform another 252 military funerals - for a total of 12,271 - before 2017 begins.
The New York Army National Guard's Military Force Honor Guard performed 10, 085 of these funerals. New York Air National Guard Wing Honor Guards conducted 1,934 funeral services.
The Army National Guard teams expect to perform 193 more funerals before Jan. 1, 2016. New York Air National Guard honor guards anticipate conducting another 59 funerals by Dec.31.
In 2015 the New York National Guard honor guards performed 10,692 military funerals. The Army National Guard conducted 8,725 services, while the Air National Guard performed funeral services 1,967 times.
In 2014, New York National Guard Soldiers and Airmen conducted military funerals for 11,365 families.
Since 2000, federal law has mandated that any military veteran who did not receive a dishonorable discharge from the armed forces is eligible for military honors at his or her funeral.
The ceremony must include the folding and presenting of the flag of the United States to the veteran's survivors and the playing of Taps.
Because of the demand for funeral services, the Army authorizes the use of an electronic bugle. The Soldier raises a bugle to his lips and pushes a button and an electronic device plays Taps.
The size of the detail varies from a minimum of two service members to nine or more personnel for deceased service members who retired from the military after a full career or were awarded medals for valor.
At least one of the honor guard members must belong to the service the deceased service member had served in.
In most cases, the New York Army and Air National Guard provide just a two-member detail for funerals. The Army National Guard provided more traditional military funeral services 44 times in 2016.
The New York Army National Guard has 31 Soldiers serving full-time on funeral honors details, with another 117 Soldiers who volunteer to perform funeral honors on a part-time basis when needed.
New York Army National Guard Soldiers go through a week-long training process to become fully certified in providing military funerals.
The New York Army National Guard conducts about 98 percent of military funeral details for Army veterans within the state, said Sgt. 1st Class Edwin Dominguez, a Porters Corners, New York, resident and the honor guard non-commissioned officer in charge.
The job is a rewarding one, said Spec. Nathaniel Cross, a Glens Falls, New York, resident who is an honor guard trainer and bugler.
"The services we provide are part of the last memories families have of burying a loved one," Cross said. "It is so important that what we do is done with dignity and respect."
"We have one shot to do it right, which is why we strive to exceed the standards," he added.
For Spc. Ramon Rodriguez, a Saratoga, New York, resident, serving on the New York Army National Guard's Honor Guard is a family affair. His father, Ramon Rodriguez IV, also serves on the team. Occasionally they've even done funerals together.
"Honor is a value that was instilled in me by my father and it's a privilege to be here to honor our veterans," he said.
Working out of the Honor Guard's Kingston office, Rodriguez coordinates funerals services north to the Canadian border and west to Herkimer County in the Mohawk Valley.
The New York Army National Guard honor guard operates from nine locations across New York.
The 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum conducts military funerals within 50 miles of the post. The U.S. Army Reserve's 99th Army Reserve Command and the United States Military Academy at West Point also perform military funerals when requested by the Army casualty assistance center at Joint Base Maguire-Dix-Lakehurst.
New York Air National Guard Honor Guards operate at each of the New York Air National Guard's five wings and the Eastern Air Defense Sector headquarters in Rome.
National Guard Airmen serve full-time as honor guard members on three-year active duty tours. Air wings also have volunteers who can be called upon to provide the service when needed.
The Air National Guard honor guards provide funeral services primarily to Air Force veterans, but can provide services for veterans of other services when asked, explained Master Sgt. Jennifer Dippo, the non-commissioned officer in charge of the 109th Airlift Wing Honor Guard at Stratton Air National Guard Base in Scotia, N.Y.
The five full-time honor guard members and two volunteers who work for her provide funerals within an 11,000 square-mile area that reaches east into Massachusetts and Vermont, north to the St. Lawrence River and west to the Utica area, said Dippo, who lives in Ballston Lake, New York.
The 106th Rescue Wing, based at Francis S. Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton Beach, has one of the busiest honor guards.
The wing's five full-time and two volunteer honor guard members provide funeral services in the New York City metropolitan area, which includes Calverton National Cemetery in Wading River.
The job is both a challenge and an honor, said Staff Sgt. Michael Pennolino, the wing honor guard non-commissioned officer-in-charge.
"It's a calling more than a job," the Bayshore resident said.