By Mike Steely
Senior Writer
steelym@knoxfocus.com
Services for three unclaimed veterans will be held at the East Tennessee Veterans Cemetery at 2200 East Governor John Sevier Highway on Wednesday, May 6, at 1 p.m. It takes a lot of preparation, care and patriotism to hold such events to honor our veterans. Many organizations are involved, and the ceremonies are coordinated by Berry Funeral Home of Knoxville.
Being interred are TSG Brian Neil Forbes, U.S. Air Force, PFC Robert James Vargo, U.S. Army, and SP4 George Edwin Day Jr., U.S. Army.
The Knoxville Focus asked Jeff Berry how and why the funeral home is involved. Here is his reply:
In March of 2011, I approached Dr. Darinka Mileusnic and Larry Vinyard at the Knox County Regional Forensic Center with the idea of Berry Funeral Home accepting responsibility for burial and full military honors for any unclaimed or homeless veteran who served honorably in the United States Armed Forces. We now work with Chris Thomas, director of the Knox County Forensic Center, and Mike Donila in coordinating and scheduling the services.
When an individual is left unclaimed at the forensic center, the forensic center staff will contact the East Tennessee State Veterans Cemetery and have the staff there check with the VA to see if the individual was a veteran and if the veteran was honorably discharged. At a selected time, the forensic center will reach out to the funeral home, and we will then begin to coordinate a funeral with full military honors with the forensic center and the cemetery. It’s a great partnership between the forensic center, the cemetery and the funeral home.
The fourth part of the partnership comes in planning the service. Many individuals and groups lend a hand to get the word out and then show up on the day of the service to be the family for the unclaimed or homeless veterans.
Each military branch is represented with active-duty military honor guards. All area volunteer veteran honor guards are invited to attend, as well as veteran service organizations such as the American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Marine Corps League, just to name a few. So many I have not mentioned.
Many area motorcycle groups, including the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, will lend aid with a procession from Berry Funeral Home on Chapman to the cemetery.
While the VA contributes an allowance for a casket or urn and has a small burial allowance, the majority of the cost is absorbed by the funeral home. It is never about money. For us, it is one way to ensure that our unclaimed veterans are taken care of and given the honors that they are due.
The greatest reward is visiting the graves of these veterans weeks later when the white marble marker is set, and the name of the veteran etched in stone stands as a permanent memorial to the individual and their service.
From 2011 to 2026, we have assisted with 118 veteran burials and one spouse, who was buried with her husband. We have had two female veterans, one of whom I was able to get six female cadets from the University of Tennessee Army ROTC to serve as pallbearers with the honor guard. The majority of the veterans are from the Vietnam era and peacetime, with only a few from the Korean Conflict era and World War II. Now we are seeing a few from the Gulf War.
Those who wish to attend the May 6 memorial service may meet at the East Tennessee State Veterans Cemetery, 2200 E. Governor John Sevier Highway, Knoxville, TN 37920 at noon, and those who wish to participate in the motorcycle escort to the cemetery may meet at Berry Funeral Home, 3704 Chapman Highway, at 11:45 a.m. and process to the cemetery.
