{"id":52647,"date":"2020-01-30T02:42:35","date_gmt":"2020-01-30T02:42:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/01\/30\/hundreds-attend-illinois-funeral-for-air-force-veteran-with-no-known-relatives\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T09:55:54","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T09:55:54","slug":"hundreds-attend-illinois-funeral-for-air-force-veteran-with-no-known-relatives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2020\/01\/30\/hundreds-attend-illinois-funeral-for-air-force-veteran-with-no-known-relatives\/","title":{"rendered":"Hundreds attend Illinois funeral for Air Force veteran with no known relatives"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">ELGIN, Ill. \u2014 Hundreds of people attended a funeral service in suburban Chicago Wednesday for a former U.S. Air Force mechanic who became an \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2019\/01\/20\/unclaimed-veterans-buried-with-dignity-thanks-to-strangers\/\" target=_blank>unclaimed veteran<\/a>\u201d when he died last month. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The service for John James Murphy, 71, was held at Symonds-Madison Funeral Home in Elgin. Murphy died Dec. 18 at a nearby hospital after living in a rehabilitation center since 2017. The funeral home was unable to find any relatives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe is ours,\u201d the Rev. Tim Perry said to applause at the start of the service. <\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/veterans\/2019\/08\/04\/for-some-veterans-strangers-are-family-at-burial-services\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"174\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP19214564082078.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">For some veterans, strangers are family at burial services<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">There were no relatives at Vietnam veteran Stephen Jerald Spicer\u2019s funeral, but his passing didn\u2019t go unnoticed as a few dozen patriotic strangers showed up to honor his service.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Joy and Dan Symonds, the owners of the funeral home, invited the public to attend Murphy\u2019s service. The Symonds obtained permission from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs to conduct a service that included full military honors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Murphy was a U.S. Air Force jet engine mechanic from 1966 to 1969. His awards for military service included the Vietnam Service Medal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those who attended Murphy\u2019s service included veterans, active service members and civilians. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI didn\u2019t think so many people would be here,\u201d U.S. Navy veteran Cliff Hall told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyherald.com\/news\/20200129\/he-is-ours-hundreds-show-up-to-pay-respects-to-unclaimed-veteran-in-elgin\" target=_blank>the Daily Herald<\/a>. \u201cThis is incredible.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter\" data-effect=\"slide\"><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper\"><ul class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper\"><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3497\" height=\"2577\" alt=\"John James Murphy funeral\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-9984\" data-id=\"9984\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726546563.jpg.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726546563.jpg.jpg 3497w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726546563.jpg.jpg?resize=300,221 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726546563.jpg.jpg?resize=768,566 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726546563.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,755 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726546563.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1132 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726546563.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1509 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3497px) 100vw, 3497px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">Active duty military members who were in attendance carry the casket. (AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3797\" height=\"2805\" alt=\"John James Murphy funeral\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-9998\" data-id=\"9998\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726531769.jpg.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726531769.jpg.jpg 3797w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726531769.jpg.jpg?resize=300,222 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726531769.jpg.jpg?resize=768,567 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726531769.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,756 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726531769.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1135 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726531769.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1513 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3797px) 100vw, 3797px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">When John James Murphy died in Elgin last month, he was an &#8220;unclaimed veteran&#8221; whose relatives couldn&#8217;t be found or contacted to take care of his burial. Hundreds of people from Elgin and as far as Chicago, Aurora and Naperville attended his visitation and service Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020 after the owners of an Elgin, Ill., funeral home extended an open invitation to the community. The funeral home took on the task of having his military burial approved by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"4636\" height=\"3141\" alt=\"John James Murphy funeral\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-10014\" data-id=\"10014\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727177328.jpg.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727177328.jpg.jpg 4636w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727177328.jpg.jpg?resize=300,203 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727177328.jpg.jpg?resize=768,520 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727177328.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,694 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727177328.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1041 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727177328.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1388 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 4636px) 100vw, 4636px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">A mourner salutes. When John James Murphy died in Elgin last month, he was an &#8220;unclaimed veteran&#8221; whose relatives couldn&#8217;t be found or contacted to take care of his burial. Hundreds of people from Elgin and as far as Chicago, Aurora and Naperville attended his visitation and service Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020 after the owners of an Elgin, Ill. funeral home extended an open invitation to the community. The funeral home took on the task of having his military burial approved by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (Rick West\/Daily Herald via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"5320\" height=\"2937\" alt=\"John James Murphy funeral\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-10026\" data-id=\"10026\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726681980.jpg.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726681980.jpg.jpg 5320w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726681980.jpg.jpg?resize=300,166 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726681980.jpg.jpg?resize=768,424 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726681980.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,565 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726681980.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,848 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726681980.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1131 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 5320px) 100vw, 5320px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">When John James Murphy died in Elgin last month, he was an &#8220;unclaimed veteran&#8221; whose relatives couldn&#8217;t be found or contacted to take care of his burial. Hundreds of people from Elgin and as far as Chicago, Aurora and Naperville attended his visitation and service Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020 after the owners of an Elgin, Ill. funeral home extended an open invitation to the community. The funeral home took on the task of having his military burial approved by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (Rick West\/Daily Herald via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"4840\" height=\"2697\" alt=\"John James Murphy\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-10035\" data-id=\"10035\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726768700.jpg.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726768700.jpg.jpg 4840w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726768700.jpg.jpg?resize=300,167 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726768700.jpg.jpg?resize=768,428 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726768700.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,571 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726768700.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,856 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726768700.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1141 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 4840px) 100vw, 4840px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">Kane County Sheriff&#8217;s Deputy Susan Deuchler takes a moment to honor John James Murphy. When John James Murphy died in Elgin last month, he was an &#8220;unclaimed veteran&#8221; whose relatives couldn&#8217;t be found or contacted to take care of his burial. Hundreds of people from Elgin and as far as Chicago, Aurora and Naperville attended his visitation and service Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020 after the owners of an Elgin, Ill. funeral home extended an open invitation to the community. The funeral home took on the task of having his military burial approved by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2885\" height=\"1966\" alt=\"John James Murphy\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-10049\" data-id=\"10049\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726944885.jpg.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726944885.jpg.jpg 2885w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726944885.jpg.jpg?resize=300,204 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726944885.jpg.jpg?resize=768,523 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726944885.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,698 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726944885.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1047 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029726944885.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1396 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2885px) 100vw, 2885px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">When John James Murphy died in Elgin last month, he was an &#8220;unclaimed veteran&#8221; whose relatives couldn&#8217;t be found or contacted to take care of his burial. Hundreds of people from Elgin and as far as Chicago, Aurora and Naperville attended his visitation and service Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020 after the owners of an Elgin, Ill. funeral home extended an open invitation to the community. The funeral home took on the task of having his military burial approved by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (Rick West\/Daily Herald via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2717\" height=\"1427\" alt=\"John James Murphy\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-10057\" data-id=\"10057\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727077863.jpg.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727077863.jpg.jpg 2717w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727077863.jpg.jpg?resize=300,158 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727077863.jpg.jpg?resize=768,403 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727077863.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,538 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727077863.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,807 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20029727077863.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1076 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2717px) 100vw, 2717px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">When John James Murphy died in Elgin last month, he was an &#8220;unclaimed veteran&#8221; whose relatives couldn&#8217;t be found or contacted to take care of his burial. Hundreds of people from Elgin and as far as Chicago, Aurora and Naperville attended his visitation and service Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020 after the owners of an Elgin, Ill. funeral home extended an open invitation to the community. The funeral home took on the task of having his military burial approved by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (Rick West\/Daily Herald via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a aria-label=\"Pause Slideshow\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause\" role=\"button\"><\/a><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sonia Alfaro, a civilian from Streamwood, brought a bouquet of red roses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI wanted to come to support a veteran,\u201d Alfaro said. \u201cI wanted him to be accompanied by people who appreciated his service and what he did for his country.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A procession with a police escort took Murphy\u2019s remains to the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, where he was buried with the sounds of a 21-gun salute. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hundreds of people attended a funeral service in suburban Chicago Wednesday for a former U.S. Air Force mechanic who became an \u201cunclaimed veteran\u201d when he died last month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":10026,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":19,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,23,93,12,25,19],"tags":[],"coauthors":[1351],"class_list":["post-52647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-veterans"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"H6NEMQIXNBDUHABOXORS3J2GJ4","arc_canonical_url":"\/veterans\/2020\/01\/30\/hundreds-attend-illinois-funeral-for-air-force-veteran-with-no-known-relatives\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Hundreds attend Illinois funeral for Air Force veteran with no known relatives - Marine Corps Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Hundreds of people attended a funeral service in suburban Chicago Wednesday for a former U.S. Air Force mechanic who became an \u201cunclaimed veteran\u201d when he died last month.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hundreds attend Illinois funeral for Air Force veteran with no known relatives\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Hundreds of people attended a funeral service in suburban Chicago Wednesday for a former U.S. Air Force mechanic who became an \u201cunclaimed veteran\u201d when he died last month.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2020\/01\/30\/hundreds-attend-illinois-funeral-for-air-force-veteran-with-no-known-relatives\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Marine Corps Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-01-30T02:42:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T09:55:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"The Associated Press\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"The Associated Press\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": 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