popular

A veteran died alone, so hundreds of strangers showed up to honor him at his military funeral

"This veteran has no immediate family. All are welcome to attend."

A veteran died alone, so hundreds of strangers showed up to honor him at his military funeral
via Legacy Options

Edward Pearson was born in Pennsylvania on April 23, 1939 and he lived on a farm. He served in the U.S. Army from 1962 and 1964.

He was married once, divorced once, and had no children. He spent that last 25 years of his living in Naples, Florida where he was beloved at his local Publix grocery store.

The last few years of his life were hard for Pearson. He lived in a trailer that was damaged by Hurricane Irma in 2017. His kitchen leaked and the trailer was filled with mold.

He attempted to get it fixed through a government program called Rebuild Florida, but the repairs were delayed due to problems with the title on the trailer — there wasn't any. He had been scammed by the seller.

RELATED: He was a homeless veteran. Karis Village offered him not just a home, but a community.

A customer service representative for the Collier County Tax Collector's office shared his story on social media and people came to his aid, fixing his trailer and giving him $1600.

In July, the title on his trailer was secured, but he passed away on August 31 at the age of 80.

Legacy Options Funeral and Cremation posted a small obituary when he died, announcing his funeral will be held at Sarasota National Cemetery on Oct. 1 at 12:30 p.m. The last line said: "This veteran has no immediate family. All are welcome to attend."

News of Pearson's funeral went viral after it was shared by CNN's Jake Tapper and Florida Senator Marco Rubio.


On Tuesday, October 1, hundreds of people showed up to the Sarasota National Cemetery for his service featuring military honors, including the playing of bugle call "Taps" along with the U.S. flag folding and presentation.


People who never met Pearson spoke on his behalf. "I heard about Mr. Pearson Facebook, and that he had no family to attend his service and I thought there couldn't be a better way to spend a day then to come and honor this man," one man said.

Pearson's neighbor was able to share how he'd react to such an outpouring of love. "If Ed were here today and saw this service, he'd cry, he'd laugh and he'd salute," she said.

RELATED: Veteran with PTSD writes powerful book 'Why is Dad So Mad?' to help explain the disorder to his young daughter.

A military sergeant stood up at the podium and read poem for Pearson.

Archie Sanders came to stand up for a member of the "brotherhood."

You can watch the entire service below.






Related Articles Around the Web
veteran died alone funeral
Badge
Frito-Lay
Building the Future Together
popular

Frito-Lay and Feed the Children partner to help provide food to thousands of students during COVID-19

True
Frito-Lay

Did you know one in five families are unable to provide everyday essentials and food for their children? This summer was also the hungriest on record with one in four children not knowing where their next meal will come from – an increase from one in seven children prior to the pandemic. The effects of COVID-19 continue to be felt around the country and many people struggle to secure basic needs. Unemployment is at an all-time high and an alarming number of families face food insecurity, not only from the increased financial burdens but also because many students and families rely on schools for school meal programs and other daily essentials.

This school year is unlike any other. Frito-Lay knew the critical need to ensure children have enough food and resources to succeed. The company quickly pivoted to expand its partnership with Feed the Children, a leading nonprofit focused on alleviating childhood hunger, to create the "Building the Future Together" program to provide shelf-stable food to supplement more than a quarter-million meals and distribute 500,000 pantry staples, school supplies, snacks, books, hand sanitizer, and personal care items to schools in underserved communities.

Keep Reading Show less
schools
Planet

Scientists just created an enzyme that rapidly breaks down plastic pollution

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

Last year, we shared the sad impact that plastic pollution has had on some of our planet's most beautiful places. With recycling not turning out to be the savior it was made out to be, solutions to our growing plastic problem can seem distant and complex.

We have seen some glimmers of hope from both human innovation and nature itself, however. In 2016, a bacteria that evolved with the ability to break down plastic was discovered in a Japanese waste site. Two years later, scientists managed to engineer the mutant plastic-eating enzyme they called PETase—named for polyethylene terephthalate, the most common plastic found in bottles and food packaging—in a lab.

Here's an explainer of how those enzymes work:

Ending Plastic Pollution with Designer Bacteria youtu.be

Now researchers have revealed another game-changer in the plastic-eater—a super-enzyme that can break down plastic six times faster than PETase alone.

Keep Reading Show less
Badge
C40
C40 Cities
Divest/Invest

Global mayors are declaring their commitment to divest from fossil fuels and invest in a sustainable future

True

$200 billion of COVID-19 recovery funding is being used to bail out fossil fuel companies. These mayors are combatting this and instead investing in green jobs and a just recovery.

Learn more on how cities are taking action: c40.org/divest-invest


climate change
popular

Dan Rather, 88, says we are in 'a moment of reckoning unlike any I have seen in my lifetime'

Dan Rather/Facebook, Moody College of Communication

Former CBS News anchor Dan Rather has become a beloved voice of reason, knowledge, and experience for many Americans on social media the past few years. At 88, Rather has seen more than most of us, and as a journalist, he's had a front row seat as modern history has played out. He combines that lifetime of experience and perspective with an eloquence that hearkens to a time when eloquence mattered, he called us to our common American ideals with his book "What Unites Us," and he comforts many of is with his repeated message to stay "steady" through the turmoil the U.S. has been experiencing.

All of that is to say, when Dan Rather sounds the alarm, you know we've reached a critical historical moment.

Yesterday, President Trump again refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power after the election when directly asked if he would—yet another democratic norm being toppled. Afterward, Rather posted the following words of wisdom—and warning—to his nearly three million Facebook fans:


Keep Reading Show less
democracy
popular

One's white. The other's black. But their mom wants you to know they're still identical twins.

via DanielandDavid2 / Instagram

Editor's Note: We used "black" in lowercase for our headline and the body of this story in accordance with emerging guidelines from the Associated Press and other trusted news outlets who are using uppercase "Black" in reference to American descendants of the diaspora of individuals forcibly brought from Africa as slaves. As part of our ongoing efforts to be transparent and communicate choices with our readership, we've included this note for clarity. The original story begins below.

On February 26, 2019, Stacy and Babajide Omirin of Lagos, Nigeria got quite the shock. When Stacy delivered identical twins through C-section one came out black and the other, white.

The parents knew they were having identical twins and expected them to look exactly the same. But one has a white-looking complexion and golden, wavy hair.

"It was a massive surprise," Stacy told The Daily Mail. "Daniel came first, and then the nurse said the second baby has golden hair. I thought how can this be possible. I looked down and saw David, he was completely white."

Keep Reading Show less
family
Trending Topics
Trending Stories
Sister Sites