Honor Guard Gets Job Back With State's 'Blessing'
By Randy Hall
CNSNews.com Evening Editor
August 11, 2003
(CNSNews.com) - An honor guardsman who was fired last year by the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs for offering religious blessings at funerals is returning to work Monday with back pay, though there's still some confusion as to when he can say "God bless you" to veterans' families.
"I'm glad it's over - well, I hope it's over," said Patrick Cubbage, a 54-year-old Vietnam veteran and former police officer from Philadelphia who worked part time as an honor guard at the Brig. Gen. William C. Doyle Veterans' Memorial Cemetery in Burlington County, N.J.
Cubbage's supervisors fired him last October because he finished flag presentations with the words, "God bless you and this family, and God bless the United States of America."
The Rutherford Institute, a nonprofit civil liberties organization based in Charlottesville, Va., came to Cubbage's defense, with institute President John Whitehead serving as his attorney.
The matter received national attention, and the state offered in late January to give Cubbage his job back, a proposal he rejected as "inadequate."
On July 29, however, Cubbage reached a settlement with the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs that Whitehead called "precedent setting."
Not only does Cubbage return to his post, but he also receives 10 months' back pay. And most importantly, honor guards "must now ask the families [of the deceased] if they want the religious service," according to the agreement.
"Before, they could do it," Whitehead said. "Now, they have to do it."
However, Lt. Col. Roberta Niedt, a public affairs officer in the department, said she thought the blessing might be allowed only at Air Force interment ceremonies.
Niedt admitted that she had not read the settlement, but her understanding was that the cemetery's interment officer "must follow the standards set forth by each of the military departments. The Department of the Army has its protocol, as does the Department of the Air Force, the Navy, the Coast Guard, and the Marines. Each of those comes with a standard phrase."
Still, the issue of whether all five branches of service allow the same blessing is much less significant than the problems Cubbage faced at the beginning of the controversy.
Hired during October of 2001, Cubbage participated in about 2,000 burial services. As part of his regular ceremonial duties, Cubbage presented a folded U.S. flag to the deceased's next of kin.
In accordance with protocol, Cubbage would say: "This flag is presented on behalf of a grateful nation and the United States Army as a token of appreciation for your loved one's honorable and faithful service."
Cubbage also regularly said: "God bless you and this family, and God bless the United States of America."
After other honor guards objected to the religious blessing, a supervisor approached Cubbage and told him the blessing could no longer be given unless the deceased's family formally requested it.
Cubbage was fired Oct. 31 after he offered a blessing - even though the deceased's family said they would welcome it.
Cubbage said he got the words from the Flag Presentation Protocol given to him by the Department of Defense when he started his job.
The New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs issued a letter backing up Cubbage's use of the words "God bless" if the next of kin had expressed a religious preference or belief.
Whitehead said the issue escalated because, in today's cultural climate, God and the mention of God are politically incorrect.
Now, however, Cubbage said he expected to work out any final details on his responsibilities when he reports for duty back at the Doyle Cemetery. "They'll give me all the particulars when I get there," he said.
Whitehead said he would be interested to see what happens when Cubbage returns to work. "It's clear what they have to do," he said. "If they don't, they can get sued again."
http://www.cnsnews.com/Pentagon/Archive/200301/PEN20030128a.html http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPentagon.asp?Page=/Pentagon/archive/200308/PEN20030811a.html http://www.rutherford.org/ http://www.rutherford.org/articles_db/press_release.asp?article_id=440PC gone mad.
God Bless John Whitehead.
Thanks for the update Coleus.