The Rev. Gary Menard blesses a cremated body with holy water as Myles Carson carries it to its final resting place during a funeral service for unclaimed deceased persons at the Mount Olivet Catholic Cemetery on May 4 in Raytown, Missouri. Eight high schoolers from Rockhurst High School helped give the deceased a proper burial service.
Nick Wagner | The Kansas City Star/TNS
Beneath a gray sky at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Raytown, Missouri, Father Gary Menard gathered a group of high school students around him and told them that everyone dies twice.
That is, once when they physically die, he said. And a second time when their name is spoken for the last time.
Surrounding him in a semi-circle were eight Rockhurst High School students, their heads bowed, their hands clasped. They joined together that morning earlier this month to help lay to rest 32 people who died without loved ones to bury them.
Some may have been homeless, others found alone and deceased in their homes.
The students perform this task in collaboration with a local funeral home, which is contracted with the county to handle burials of the unclaimed.
As part of the service, Menard recited the Lord’s Prayer and spoke about the unclaimed.
“Let’s remember these folks who have died in our city,” he said. “They might have been loved and supported in all kinds of ways in their lives, but at the end of their lives, there’s really nobody there for them. And it’s our privilege to be there for them.”
The Jackson County Medical Examiner’s Office is responsible for identifying the deceased and locating next of kin. When family does not come forward, the office files paperwork for cremation. Once that is approved, a body is released to Muehlebach Funeral Care. Then the funeral home and Rockhurst organize a ceremony where the students help inter the boxes of ashes in the cemetery.
The service appears unique in the Kansas City area.
In Johnson County, cremains of unclaimed persons are placed in a vault without a ceremony, county medical examiner Diane Peterson said. When a veteran is buried, the patriot guard is called to escort decedents to the site. In Wyandotte County, abandoned ashes are either scattered or placed into a mausoleum at a local cemetery, public health department representative Terrie Garrison said. The county averages about one abandoned body per month.
In Raytown, the students lined up behind the hearse and received a small black box containing ashes. They paused in front of Menard, who sprinkled holy water on the top of the box and whispered, “Rest in peace,” before carrying the box to its final resting place. The ashes of the 32 people were placed together in a space at the cemetery.
Since 2015, Rockhurst students who are part of the school’s St. Joseph of Arimathea Society have helped lay to rest more than 200 people.
Burying the dead is one of the seven corporal works of mercy, which are practices to help others found in Jesus’ teachings.
“It’s part of our Catholic faith,” said Paul Winkeler, a teacher at Rockhurst who oversees the society. “And so to be able to partake in that is very important to them (the students).”
Every year, a little over 10,000 people die in Jackson County.
Last year, 195 people went unclaimed in Jackson County, said Tom Hensley, chief of forensic operations and investigations for the Jackson County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The medical examiner’s office is responsible for investigating non-natural and unexpected deaths, some of whom end up being honored by Rockhurst’s students.
A field investigator — the county’s office has 10 — is tasked with making a positive identification. Even when a name is readily available, they have to verify the person’s identity, often through fingerprints.
In cases where the identity is not clear, investigators reach out to support staff like forensic DNA specialists as well as the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System database.
If a person’s identity is not verified within about 10 days “we start getting nervous,” said Hensley, who has been with the ME’s office for more than 31 years.
“It’s unbelievable the amount of effort that goes into it (death investigations).”
Investigators also look for next of kin. They may sift through mail or medical records to find emergency contacts, contact insurance companies or past employers, or seek information from law enforcement databases.
“We jump through a lot of hoops trying to make that connection,” Hensley said. “Sometimes we don’t have any luck.”
Some individuals wind up posted on the medical examiner’s website: 70-year-old Vincent Warrant was found deceased at his residence in the 4000 block of Mill Street; 43-year-old Laura “Merrick” Lane was known to be homeless and may have had ties to Oklahoma; 36-year-old Alexander Johnson was found deceased near the 2100 block of Walnut Street and reportedly homeless.
While there is not a set time frame, eventually an application for cremation is submitted to the county. If approved, Muehlebach Funeral Care picks up the body. The funeral home keeps the remains until a ceremony with Rockhurst is organized.
If a family member later comes forward, they can claim the ashes from Muehlebach.
In rare cases — such as a homicide — a person is buried.
During the May 4 service, Rich Sullivan, a counselor at Rockhurst, read the names of the 32 individuals.
After delivering the final boxes of ashes, junior Myles Carson reflected on participating.
“Just carrying people’s bodies, it made me feel how grateful I am to have a supporting family around me and it made me realize that I need to reach out and help out other people that don’t have the same opportunity as me,” he said.
Winkeler said he has been a part of many activities at the high school throughout his 24 years of teaching.
“There is nothing that we are fortunate enough to do at Rockhurst that even compares to these events and being a part of this,” he said.
“When they’re carrying the remains, there’s a look on their face, there’s just something there that you don’t see anything else that we do here.”
Standing near the burial site, Rockhurst senior John Henninger said he has participated in the ceremony once before.
“It stuck with me. This isn’t something you forget,” he said. “I just felt honored to be with them and be there for their last moment.”
