Dozens – both young and old – gathered in Corpus Christi to honor three veterans laid to rest without family, ensuring no service member is ever buried alone.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Dozens of community members gathered Friday at the Coastal Bend State Veterans Cemetery to honor three veterans who were laid to rest without known family members present.
The ceremony recognized Army veteran Mark Lee Moore and Navy veterans John C. Bowers and David Alan Dunn, who together served a combined 36 years in the U.S. armed forces. Their services were classified as unaccompanied burials, meaning the veterans had no relatives or close family members able to attend.
Attendees said the purpose of showing up was simple: to ensure no veteran is ever buried alone
Marion Wine, took both of her children out of school early to attend the ceremony — not to get a start on holiday travel, but to help them reflect on the meaning of the season.
“This week is the last week of school before Christmas Break and so I think it’s really important to remember the season and celebrate the season,” said Wine, an engineer at LyondellBasell. “This veteran in particular served for ten years and so I thought it would be a really great way to start to Christmas break to keep things in perspective.”
Cash, Marion’s young son was happy to be there.
“We want to honor those who fought for our country and nobody should die alone,” he said.
Unaccompanied burials rely heavily on community members, veterans organizations and active-duty service members to stand in for family.
Among those paying their respects was Carlos Gonzalez, Command Master Chief at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, who attended in uniform.
“It does happen where there’s sailors or service members that don’t have family,” Gonzalez said. “Who knows what their story is? But I love saying ‘no veteran gets left behind.’ The sailor is not alone, this man is not alone — he has a family with the military and with the veterans.”
For Gonzalez, the ceremony also carried personal significance as he’s due to retire in April after nearly three decades in the Navy.
“This may be the last time I’m wearing this uniform — service dress blues — because I’ll be retiring in a different uniform,” he said. “So what an honor to wear it this last time at this moment to share with this sailor.”
Organizers say unaccompanied burials are open to the public, and anyone can attend to help honor veterans who might otherwise be laid to rest alone.