Arlington, other military cemeteries reopen in time for Memorial Day

 She wished it could have come earlier, but Rose Duffman Duval is happy that all visitors to Arlington National Cemetery will soon have the same access she had even at the height of the COVID-19 shutdown last year.

Ms. Duval, a Gold Star mother, said she didn’t have any problems with the restrictions at the massive military cemetery across the Potomac River from Washington. During the COVID-19 closures, she managed to secure a pass to visit the grave of her son, Air Force Tech Sgt. Scott Duffman.

Duffman was a member of the Air Force’s elite Pararescue community, also known as the PJs. He was one of seven service members killed on Feb. 18, 2007, in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan. Ms. Duval said he volunteered to take the place of a member of his unit whose wife was about to give birth to their first child.

“Scott was good at what he did, and he excelled at anything he loved or cared about. Being a PJ is what he lived for,” said Ms. Duval, who lives about 40 miles away from the Arlington cemetery.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, she visited her son’s grave at least once a month and during holidays. Ms. Duval said she can understand the frustrations of other family members of the fallen who have faced more challenges to enter Arlington National Cemetery.

Arlington National Cemetery “is run by the Army, and my experience is that there is an expectation from them that family pass holders need to understand this is an Army cemetery and not open to displays or activities found at other cemeteries,” Ms. Duval said. “In my opinion, the rules were over the top and could have been lifted much sooner.”

The pandemic hit the cemetery just as it did other public sites across the country. Arlington National Cemetery officials said the success with vaccines to control COVID-19 will make this Memorial Day vastly different from last year.

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/may/29/families-heartened-as-arlington-national-cemetery-/