Under a sunny Colorado sky at Pikes Peak National Cemetery, Kennedy Pugh took a breath Thursday afternoon, bracing himself as members of the U.S. Air Force Honor Guard slid a gleaming silver casket out of a hearse.
His brother, Alvin Pugh, was finally home. As Taps echoed through the cemetery, the Honor Guard draped a flag over the casket, and the priest from the Pugh family’s parish in Pueblo began the ritual of laying Alvin to rest. “It was beautiful,” Kennedy said.
This was Alvin Pugh’s second burial, though. His two sisters and three brothers didn’t attend his first one. They didn’t even know about it.
On Feb. 21, 2023, about 1,800 miles away from Colorado, the Department of Veterans Affairs mistakenly buried 60-year-old Pugh as an unclaimed veteran in Calverton National Cemetery in New York. After The War Horse reported on the Pugh family’s ordeal three months ago, the VA pledged to reinter Alvin Pugh at Pikes Peak and cover all costs.
“I’m at peace,” said Patti Pugh, Alvin’s sister, after the burial, which included the traditional 21-gun salute, and a surprise touch Alvin would’ve loved. The Blue Angels were practicing for an air show in nearby Colorado Springs, and as his family prepared for the burial, their jets roared overhead in formation. Most unclaimed veterans don’t find such a resolution.
For decades, bureaucracy and a lack of coordination among Veterans Affairs and local agencies have allowed the remains of tens of thousands of vetera.