Missing in Nevada: 15 Unclaimed Veterans Receive Military Burial

(Fernley)— The Nevada Veterans Coalition played host to another Missing in Nevada ceremony by laying to rest the unclaimed remains of 15 veterans.  The veterans joined their brothers and sisters at the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in a solemn ceremony that remembered them for their service and sacrifices.

The ceremony was held on Friday, April 12, 2019.  Approximately 100 people attended to honor and mourn the veterans. Their remains had been in the care of a local mortuary, yet remained unclaimed, until they were identified by the coalition for a proper military burial.  

The ceremony included a rifle volley and flag-folding presentation.  It concluded at the gravesite.  This ceremony was the sixteenth conducted by the Nevada Veterans Coalition for those Nevada veterans whose remains were unclaimed.

The names of the honored are as follows:

MaClain Hamilton (1912 -1976) served in the US NAVY 30 Mar 1951 – 8 Jan 1953 Korea

Eino Karpinen (1915 -1975) served in the US NAVY 2 Sep 1942 – 17 Oct 1945 WWII

Robert Mackenzie (1902 -1980) served in the US ARMY 29 Oct 1942 – 20 Mar 1943 WWII

Paul McBride (1960 -1983) served in the US ARMY 10 May 1979 – 23 Mar 1982 Cold War

James McGregor (1921-1981) served in the US ARMY 6 Feb 1941 – 14 Nov 1945 WWII/Purple Heart

Jesse McWilliams (1917-1987) served in the US ARMY 06 Dec 1938 – 26 Jul 1945 WWII

George Miller (1895 -1984) served in the US ARMY 24 Jun 1918 – 11 Jan 1919 WWI

Ralph Moore (1904 -1988) served in the US ARMY 31 Oct 1942 – 22 Jan 1943 WWII

William Moorhead (1910 -1986) served in the US NAVY 27 Apr 1942 – 17 Dec 1945 WWII

Jimmy Naves/Tadlock (1925 -1985) served in the US ARMY 27 Oct 1943 – 21 Feb 1944 WWII

Robert Overton (1916 -1978) served in the US ARMY 4 Dec 1942 – 11 Nov 1945 WWII

Pete Parisena (1925 -1988) served in the US NAVY 20 Nov 1943 – 09 Dec 1945 WWII

Walter Parker (1910 -1983) served in the US NAVY 01 May 1929 – 31 Aug 1958 WWII/Korea

Harold Peterson (1931 – 1990) served in the US AIR FORCE 28 Nov 1949 – 1 Sep 1953 WWII

James Peterson (1911 – 1985) served in the US ARMY/USAF 02 Dec 1940 – 02 May 1949 WWII

The Navy Times picked up Nevada Appeal reporter Steve Ranson’s story about the ceremony. Read more here:

https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2019/04/19/final-farewell-for-a-world-war-ii-veteran/