TORONTO – This past Friday, U.S. Navy aviation machinist airman Jerry Billings was laid to rest with full military honours at the Bill Eisenhour Funeral Home in Oklahoma City.
Nearly 1,000 people attended his memorial service. They included current and former military personnel, first responders, various bike gangs, and Oklahoma City families of all shapes and sizes.
Incredibly, not a single one of them had ever met Billings, or had a relationship with him prior to his passing.
Yet all had been touched by the story of a homeless veteran who very nearly slipped through the cracks after no family members came forward to claim his body.
“Today, we are his family,” said Chaplain Charles Anderson, who officiated his service.
NewsOk.com reports that Billings served in the United States Navy from 1965 to 1968 as an aviation machinist’s mate airman. He served in the Vietnam War and was awarded the National Defense Service Medal.
The 69-year-old homeless man was found dead on Christmas Eve 2014. And after no one stepped forward to claim his remains, his body was sent to Oklahoma County Social Services.
Christine Hoffman, who works for Oklahoma City, decided to try and organize a service for the former Navy man.
“I’ve done other funerals, and I’m like the only one that was there,” Hoffman told KFOR News in Oklahoma.
However, news of the service spread quickly over social media, being shared thousands of times both within the Oklahoma City community and beyond.
The Dignity Memorial Network, a service that helps provide proper burials for homeless veterans, agreed to help with the memorial service.
“Whatever happened in the preceding years when they ended up homeless and somebody had forgotten their name, we want to give them the opportunity to give their name back,” Jared Newman with Dignity Memorial Network said of Billings’ funeral.
Over 750 strangers showed up to say their goodbyes to a man who had served his country; lost but ultimately not forgotten.
The attendees ranged from current and former military personnel, to first responders, to biker gangs, to average Oklahoma City families.
“This was just amazing. Absolutely amazing. My heart is swollen,” Hoffman said.
A Navy honour guard laid Billings’ body to rest with full military honours, including a 21-gun salute and the presentation of a folded U.S. flag – in this case, to Patriot Guard Riders of Oklahoma in lieu of actual friends or family.
On Monday, Billings’ body was laid to rest at Fort Sill National Cemetery.
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