2,000-Plus Turn Up at Funeral of Florida Veteran With No Kin

An honor guard folds an American flag during an open funeral service for U.S. Army veteran Edward K. Pearson, on Oct. 1, 2019, at the Sarasota National Cemetary in Sarasota, Fla. Pearson has no family so his funeral home sent out a request on social media for the public to attend the service. AP Photo/Chris O'Meara

SARASOTA, Fla.—Most of the 2,000-plus people who gathered in the Florida heat on Oct. 1 didn’t know Edward Pearson. They knew little, if anything, about the life of the 80-year-old Army veteran.

But they knew of his death, and that was reason enough to attend his funeral. They came on rumbling Harley Davidsons and in sleek Mercedes. They walked into the service with the aid of canes and service dogs. Women clasped bouquets of white flowers. Men gripped American flags large and small.