Seeing an obituary of an elderly veteran who has no living relatives is hard to imagine, especially on the holidays.

On Memorial Day in 2014, the Southwest Florida Military Museum held a Memorial Day ceremony to honor Richard Ferris of New York City. Private Ferris received the Distinguished Service Cross posthumously for his heroic actions in Italy in September 1943.Despite intense enemy machine gun and artillery fire and being wounded by a shell fragment, Ferris continued to fire at the enemy and succeeded in silencing two enemy machine guns and two artillery pieces, causing four tanks to disperse. His actions enabled the infantry to establish the beachhead.Sadly, Ferris' Purple Heart Citation and photos were found in a storage locker that was rescued from the garbage in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Thankfully, the sacred military objects were rescued and now have a permanent home in the museum.There are other heartwarming stories of old soldiers who may have died alone but who were then remembered by those learning about it through the media. A few weeks ago, more than 1,000 strangers showed up in Indiana to say goodbye to a veteran who had no family. The funeral of former Marine Cpl. Billy Aldridge was made open to the public after he passed away in an Indianapolis nursing home at the age of 80.The story went national and many were amazed at how a community came together to remember a fellow veteran despite not knowing anything about him.In August, hundreds of people turned out in Lancaster, Kentucky, to provide a military funeral for another veteran they didn't know. When Vietnam veteran Don Kaas died at age 66, the VA hospital could not locate any members of the former sailor's family so Shane Young, a funeral home owner, decided to post about it on Facebook.The response was quick and overwhelming.With support from local veterans organizations, an estimated 800 people showed up to honor Kaas and provide him with a full military funeral.Young said he received many offers to cover the expenses for the ceremony but he declined, asking instead that people donate to veterans organizations.There are VA centers that are also working to make sure veterans who are alone are not forgotten. Two years ago, the Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center instituted a nationwide program called "No Veteran Dies Alone."The Department of Veterans Affairs program helps to fulfill President Abraham Lincoln's promise "to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans."The mission of the trained volunteers is to work alongside talented medical hospice professionals within the medical center to provide patients with a dignified and comforted death. They do this by simply talking, reading or quietly sitting with veterans in their final hours.My father, a World War II veteran, passed away just before Christmas 22 years ago. Though it was a somber holiday, he thankfully had family around him in his final hours.For those who are alone, however, programs like "No Veteran Dies Alone" fills a need that speaks to what the Christmas "spirit" should be about.By JIM ZBICK |

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