It is a somber walk among the perfectly aligned white markers honoring the final resting place for hundreds of U.S. military veterans and their family members at Omaha National VA Cemetery. This 236-acre cemetery will eventually serve the burial needs of more than 112,000 veterans over the next century.

First acquired in 2012 for $6.2 million, the cemetery in Sarpy County, just off Interstate 80 on the south side of Omaha, is among the newest Midwest cemeteries to be added to the National Cemetery network in the U.S. It was dedicated on Aug. 5, 2016, with the first interments taking place Sept. 27 that same year.

There are special requirements for burial at Omaha. It is for veterans and members of the armed forces of the U.S. who die on active duty, or any veteran who was discharged under conditions other than dishonorable. The first interments at Omaha included Army Spc. Michael Brabec, Marine Cpl. John F. Ernst, Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Russell Rosberg and Air Force Sgt. James Edgell.

Notable heroes

Since those first burials, other notable interments include Melvin Carl Anderson, who was a World War II sergeant in Company C, 803rd Tank Destroyer Battalion, supporting fighting near Grosshau, Germany. On Dec. 21, 1944, he was killed in action and awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster posthumously.

Related:War dead honored at Fort McPherson National Cemetery

Another notable burial includes Wilfred Louis Ebel, who served as the fifth director of what is now the National Cemetery Association. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean and Vietnam conflicts, and in civilian life, he held appointments in the Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Bush administrations.

Omaha is the second national cemetery in Nebraska. The first, Fort McPherson National Cemetery, was established near Maxwell, Neb., in 1873 at the site of a Civil War fort built in 1863 to ensure peace between overland emigrants on the Oregon Trail and native tribes inhabiting the region.

Omaha National VA Cemetery is open daily from sunrise to sunset, with office hours running from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Learn more online at cem.va.gov/cems/nchp/omaha.asp.