Unclaimed remains to go to final rest in ceremony Wednesday

The ceremony is open to the public

By Michael S. Lockett • July 30, 2024 2:30 am
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The Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office has found a final resting place for the dozens of sets of cremated remains left unclaimed and in their possession. (Michael S. Lockett / The Daily World File)
The Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office has found a final resting place for the dozens of sets of cremated remains left unclaimed and in their possession. (Michael S. Lockett / The Daily World File)

Dozens of people who died in the county over the years but whose cremated remains were never claimed will go to a final rest together on Wednesday as they’re interred at Sunset Memorial Park in Hoquiam.

Organized by the Grays Harbor Coroner’s Office, a brief ceremony will be held at 1 p.m. to lay the nearly 70 dead to rest, open to the public.

“It’s very informal. We’re going to start at 1 p.m.,” said County Coroner George Kelley in an interview. “We’re going to read all the names. Let the speakers say a few words for each of them.”

The remains come from a variety of sources over the years, from people who had no next of kin to those whose families could not be identified or declined to take the remains, The Daily World previously reported.

Kelley said there will be speakers from a number of local religious organizations who will offer their thoughts. The remains will be interred together in a crypt in the cemetery’s columbarium, where family members can come to pay their respects.

“I don’t know the religious denomination of any of these folks,” Kelley said. “It gives them an opportunity, depending on their religion, or even if they weren’t religious, to send them on their way.”

The ceremony marks the culmination of a months-long effort to contact families that saw more than 10% of the remains in the coroner’s office custody handed over to next of kin who were unaware of the final disposition of the dead.

“We sent them an alphabetized list. They’ll know where everyone is. If someone comes to claim them, they’ll be able to,” said Deputy Coroner Ryan Meister. “We’re just really excited to be able to do this and put these folks to rest.”

The names and final disposition will be uploaded to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, Kelley said.

“We will be putting this on the NamUs website. All our folks are on the NamUs website as unclaimed. All of them will be listed where they are,” Kelley said. “They can go there and pay their respects.”

An earlier list of the unclaimed remains was published in a previous The Daily World article https://www.thedailyworld.com/news/a-final-rest-coroners-office-finding-home-for-the-unclaimed-dead/

Contact Senior Reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or michael.lockett@thedailyworld.com.

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