A WWII VETERAN DIED WITHOUT FAMILY TO ATTEND HIS FUNERAL – WHAT HAPPENED NEXT IS AMAZING

[matt819]

38. Me, too, but that's okay

My father was in the Army from 1945 for a few years and then was recalled for the Korean War. He managed never to leave the US. In any case, he served, and that was that. He was young, and life went on. He raised a family, worked multiple jobs and multiple careers, finally retiring at age 65. He died last December, age 85. The clergyman who spoke at the funeral didn't know my father and relied on my mother, brother, and sister for info on his life history and what was important to him. Frankly, a year later I can't recall if his military service even factored into it; in other words, no one thought to mention it or gave it only passing comment. I do recall that an ongoing dispute with a brother-in-law about the Brooklyn Dodgers and NY Yankees was included. I don't know how my father would have felt if we somehow chose to make a brief episode in his life almost 70 years ago the core of his funeral service.

Things are probably different in the UK; WWII affected them very directly. There's no question that the response to Mr. Coe's death notice was touching. But the real shame is that he's being acknowledged for something he did more than 70 years ago and not for how he lead his life since.

I don't mean to come off as a curmudgeon. Really. But this military fetish is just too much.