Homeless Navy veteran receives full military burial

[kdfwr911]

The burial of a homeless Navy veteran at Willamette National Cemetery in Portland was the 1,000th in a national program that provides military honors to homeless and indigent vets.

Petty Naval Officer 2nd Class Stevenson L. Roy died of natural causes on Dec. 16, when it was discovered that he had served during the Vietnam War.

The Oregonian reported no family members could be found, so the funeral was handled by the Lincoln Memorial Funeral Home through the Dignity Memorial Homeless Veterans Burial Program.

The program provided Roy with a full military burial, complete with a 21-gun salute, missing-man procession by the Patriot Guard motorcycle riders, and presentation of the flag by the Oregon Honor Guard.

Since Roy had no widow, children, siblings, or other relatives, the honor guard presented the folded flag to 12-year-old Nick Henry because he is a member of the Civil Air Patrol and his mother is an executive at Lincoln Memorial Funeral Home, which conducted the service, reported OregonLive.com.

The Dignity Memorial Homeless Veterans Burial Program began in 2000 and is one of several efforts by the Dignity Memorial network to honor and support our nation's veterans and active military.

According to the Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs, approximately 130,000 veterans in the United States experience homelessness in a given year.

Click the link for photos.

http://photoblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/20 ... ary-burial

[E_]

I thank him for his service but in this country there is no reason to be "homeless" I see too many with free housing to beleive it is not an option somewhere. Passed a very able bodied guy with a sign this morning that said he was homeless and needed help. Then just 1/4 mile later I passed the Lexington tobacco warehouses and saw all the work there to be done. Don't know Mr. Roy's situation and don't mean to make light of it, glad they gave him a proper burial as he deserved at least that, but just wonder where the decision lies to be homeless...

[katie]

I agree E, many also suffer mentally and never recover from what they have seen and done. Maybe this fellow fought demons since his stint in Nam and thought it best not to involve anyone else or make them endure his illness. Unfortunately, when these soldiers came back from Nam, they could not even get a d@mn bus ride home, let alone mental medical assistance. It was very unmanly to complain of any mental problems back then. Some just chose to simply go into isolation... helluva existence huh?

[re3too]

Agree, katie....

[Jaybird]

What I never could understand is the services train you for months to survive, kill and be a great military fighting machine. "All you can be." "The few, the proud, the Marines" But they don't train you to assimilate back into civilian life. Perhaps a few days of orientation is what is given. Most make it back to the world, some don't. They become career military or drop out of Society. The popping in and and out of combat will take it's toll on anyone' psychy.

[kdfwr911]

Lots of possible reasons for homelessness among vets. Some just won't accept handouts or freebies. But whatever the reason for the homelessness, the program that provided a dignified burial of a homeless war vet needs to be duplicated by other states all across the country. Whether or not there's any excuse for homelessness among vets in this country is debatable.....whether or not they deserve a dignified burial isn't IMO.

[E_]

Agreed