A fitting final farewell to three veterans at Fort Jackson National Cemetery
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Three unclaimed veterans received a fitting final farewell on Friday morning.
Hundreds gathered at Fort Jackson National Cemetery for a burial ceremony and a final salute.
The veterans’ names are Sergeant Ronald Kautz, Specialist 5 Stanley Harris, and Private First Class Rick Myers.
These three veterans died without any family, and so all of the strangers served as their loved ones on Friday.
Little is known about the men.
Kautz and Harris served during the Vietnam era, and Myers served in the Army from 1984-1986.
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They have about eight years of service combined.
“Every veteran signs a blank check payable to the United States up to and including their life,” Tom Yeoman, Post 193 Legionnaire, said. “We as their fellow veterans in our country, we owe this to them that we take care of them, and if they are unclaimed for whatever reason, and we don’t care why, we want to make sure that at their final formation, their service, that they are with family. And today, we are these gentlemen’s family.”
The American Legion Post 193 in Chapin spearheaded the effort.
They have been doing this for more than a decade with additional help from the community.
A volunteer crafts the urns at no cost, and a local trophy shop provides the nameplates.
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Chaplain Col. (Ret.) Bryan Walker, who officiated the ceremony, reminded all in attendance that no plot at Fort Jackson National Cemetery can be purchased.
“Each must be earned by service and sacrifice,” he said. “And I know that the veterans we honor today earned their place among those interned on this ground.”
Col. (Ret.) Gus Fitch, a Marine Corps veteran, was among those honoring the heroes who may not otherwise have had someone to say goodbye.
“I am here because it’s the only way that I could see that I might be able to pay back the things that the Marine Corps gave me and perhaps provide some services for other people,” he said. “One of the worst things I can imagine is having a veteran of the United States military be buried in a pauper’s grave.”
Linda MacDonald, a veteran with Bugles Across America, shared her talent playing taps as a tribute to the fallen veterans.
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She said that all veterans deserve to have somebody there to represent them.
“I just keep coming back because I know that the military can’t always provide a live bugler, and a live bugler is the last honor that they get,” MacDonald said. “It’s not just about making a few notes. It’s an honor.”
Many of the veterans said the sounding of taps was the most moving part of the service.
An Honor Guard from the US Army, US Air Force, and American Legion Post 71 in North Augusta provided full military honors.
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