Missing In America Project Inters Remains of 9 Veterans Left Unclaimed in a Funeral Home in Bozeman, Montana
Additional Information
Press Release
Contact: Marty Malone – MIAP Montana State Coordinator
Phone: (406) 281-2017
Email: marty.malone@miap.us
Contact: Rikki Perkins – MIAP State Chaplain
Phone: (406) 212-3410
rikkirperkins@gmail.com
Missing In America Project, Veteran’s Recovery Program.
Missing In America Project Inters Remains of 9 Veterans Left Unclaimed in a Funeral Home in Bozeman, Montana
You served your country through a war, or through peacetime. You expected to receive a military burial, recognition by our government of your commitment to our great country. You expected to have honor and respect paid to you as a result of your service to our great country. Instead, you reside on a shelf in a mortuary or a storage facility at a crematorium.
This is happening here in Montana as well. Recently volunteers have located and identified the cremains of nine veterans that have been left unclaimed in a funeral home here in Montana. On July 26th, 2014 at 11:00 am, The Missing in America Project (MIAP), American Legion, Montana Veterans Administration and other state and federal organizations will be interring these American heroes with full Military honors at The Yellowstone National Cemetery in Laurel, Montana.
On the morning of July 25th, 2014, a motorcycle procession from Billings will ride to the Dokken-Nelson Funeral Home in Bozeman, MT where they will meet up with riders from all across the state of Montana and surrounding states to pick up and escort the remains of nine veterans to Billings. Then on the morning of Saturday July 26th, the riders will again assemble to form a funeral procession from Billings to the Yellowstone National Cemetery. There, an internment ceremony will take place giving these American heroes the proper honor and respect that they deserve.
The mission of the MIAP is to locate, identify and inter the unclaimed cremains of veterans through the joint efforts of private, state and federal organizations. These forgotten veterans have served our country and, as such, deserve to be buried with honor and respect. The impetus for our fine program began in November 2006. The Idaho State Veterans cemetery interred 21 cremains of forgotten veterans, with full military honors and the dignity these fallen heroes so richly deserved. Recently, a state hospital announced that 3500 cremains were on shelves to be identified. On the shelf were cremains for the time span of the 1890s to 1971. It is estimated 1,000 of these cremains are veterans. This is happening in every state.
Here is a list of the veterans that will be laid to rest July 26th.
1. CPL Davies P. Anderson – Army – WWII (Unclaimed 5 years)
2. SN Gerald E. Campbell – Navy – Korean (Unclaimed 8 years)
3. SP4 Robert F. Derencin – Army – None (Unclaimed 13 years)
4. SP5 Larry D. Klein – Army – Vietnam (Unclaimed 6 years)
5. Pvt. Robert L. Lewis – Army Air Corps – WWII (Unclaimed 14 years)
6. PVT Lloyd H. Miller – Army – Korean (Unclaimed 9 years)
7. 1st LT Kenneth E. Monroe – Army – WWII (Unclaimed 14 years)
8. SA Daniel Smallegan – Navy – Vietnam (Unclaimed 12 years)
9. A1C Robert L. Walls – Air Force – Korean (Unclaimed 11 years )
For updates, visit the event page on Facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/events/647969051948574/?ref=22&source=1
Ride / Escort Information
Join us for a funeral escort from Bozeman to Billings and the Yellowstone National Cemetery in Laurel, Montana.
On the morning of July 25th, 2014, a motorcycle procession from Billings will ride to the Dokken-Nelson Funeral Home in Bozeman, MT where they will meet up with riders from all across the state of Montana and surrounding states to pick up and escort the remains of nine veterans to Billings. Then on the morning of Saturday July 26th, the riders will again assemble to form a funeral procession from Billings to the Yellowstone National Cemetery. There, an internment ceremony will take place giving these American heroes the proper honor and respect that they deserve.
DATE: 07/25-26/2014 TIME: 8:00 AM
LOCATION: BEARTOOTH HARLEY DAVIDSON PARKING LOT
CONTACT: MARTY MALONE, MONTANA STATE COORDINATOR, AT 406-281-2017 FOR MORE INFORMATION.
ABOUT MISSING IN AMERICA PROGRAM
Missing in America Project
Veteran Recovery Program
Mission Statement:
The mission of the MIAP project is to locate, identify and inter the unclaimed cremated remains of veterans through the joint efforts of private, state and federal organizations; to provide honor and respect to those who have served this country, by securing a final resting place for these forgotten heroes.
If these forgotten veterans have no family to invite us, do we leave them sitting in a storage closet, or do we show our sincere respect for our fallen heroes and work to ensure a dignified resting place to honor the veteran, their family and their community?
History:
During an inventory of a crematorium, two cremation urns were discovered in a closet storage facility.
The urns contained the unclaimed remains of Sgt. Trueman, a veteran of the Vietnam conflict and his wife (also a veteran). The year of death for Sgt. Trueman was 1979. For 27 years the resting place for Sgt. and Mrs. Trueman was a storage facility in a crematorium. Other funeral homes and crematoriums were inventoried. Other unclaimed remains of veterans were discovered. In November 2006, the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery interred 21 cremated remains of forgotten veterans, with full military honors and the dignity these fallen heroes so richly deserve. This incident inspired MIAP.
Scope:
The MIAP project is two-fold. The initial focus of the MIAP project encompasses a massive, nation-wide effort to locate, identify and inter the unclaimed remains of forgotten veterans. This task will be executed through the combined, cooperative efforts of citizens, volunteer service and veteran organizations, funeral homes, state funeral commissions, State and National Veterans Administration agencies, and the State and National Veterans Cemetery Administrations. Local, state and national laws must be followed in the identification, claiming process and proper interment of our forgotten veterans.
This will be a lengthy project and will require many man-hours to ensure that we have done our utmost to discover every forgotten veteran and procure, for each, a dignified resting place. This will also be a labor of love, a task of redemption, for a debt of service that can never be repaid.
MIAP will be a long-term project but not time sensitive.
Organization:
Since the success of the MIAP project lies with the cooperative efforts of many organizations and agencies, we will employ a standardized organizational structure. It is our hope that we will meld personnel from a variety of organizations, provide logistical and administrative support and avoid duplication of efforts by our volunteers.
MIAP is an all-volunteer project. The only requirement to join us is a desire to help our veterans attain the military honor and respect due them by virtue of their service to our great country.
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For a video produced by the MIAP Montana State Chaplain, visit this YouTube link:
Video: Missing In America Project MT Chapter Slide Show.