Veterans laid to rest after discovery of 200 unclaimed urns
By Rhondella Richardson
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WINCHENDON, Massachusetts (WCVB) — Military funerals were held Friday for three Massachusetts veterans whose unclaimed urns were among 200 discovered last year.
The urns were found in November 2024 when Beverly-based Campbell Funeral Home acquired new locations in Gloucester and Ipswich. Approximately 40 of the urns contained the remains of veterans.
“Through extensive research and efforts to locate next of kin, it was discovered that several urns contained the remains of veterans, including individuals who served in World War I and World War II,” the Massachusetts Executive Office of Veterans Services said in a statement.
The three funerals held Friday follow six prior services. All were held at Massachusetts Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Winchendon.
Among the identified remains were:
Charles (Apr. 30, 1897 – Nov. 19, 1988) and Ruth Saunders (Mar. 6, 1909 – Jun. 5, 1993), funeral held Nov. 27, 2024 Francis Joseph Richards II (Mar. 25, 1918 – Dec. 26, 1976), funeral held Dec. 18, 2024 John Gilmore Wolcott (Jan. 31, 1891 – May 5, 1965), funeral held Dec. 18, 2024 Phillip L. Tutino (Aug. 5, 1933 – Nov. 23, 2005), funeral held Jan. 24, 2025 William “Pop” D. Carver (Jan. 15, 1927 – Aug. 19, 2017), funeral held Jan. 24, 2025 Suzanne W. Gleason (Mar. 6, 1921 – Sept. 21, 2001), funeral held Jan. 24, 2025
For Carver, a World War II sailor who also served in Korea and Vietnam who died at age 90, the family thought another relative had picked up the ashes.
“He was the historian and the Navy chaplain of the VFW in Des Moines, Iowa, where he lived most of his life. He was just, you know, 100 percent Navy. He would have been so excited for the salute and everything. His heart would’ve been over the moon today,” said Shawn Karabiac, Carver’s grandson.
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