A military funeral happened Wednesday afternoon at the Sarasota National Cemetery. There were about 50 people there to bury and honor Army veteran, James Murray.
“Nobody here knew him, but we wanted to pay our respects,” said funeral home director Jason Toale.
Toale helped organize the funeral after learning Murray’s nursing home couldn’t find any of his friends or family.
"We couldn’t alert any friends, we couldn’t alert any relatives so we did the best we could with what we had,” said Toale.
Crews at the Sarasota National Cemetery bury unclaimed veterans about 100 times each year.
“It really crushes me,” said veteran Martin Kresinske.
Kresinske attends veteran funerals a couple times a year.
“We’re a family at that point and once you’ve honorably served you come to hallowed ground once you pass away,” said Kresinke.
