The West Texas State Veterans Cemetery in Lubbock will conduct an unaccompanied veteran burial for U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Clinton Eugene Canfield at 9 a.m. Sept. 10 and the Texas Veterans Land Board is urging members of the community to attend.
The board holds unaccompanied burials for veterans whose remains go unclaimed by family, and it asks the public to fill the seats that relatives otherwise would. Canfield is not expected to have any next of kin present, according to a news release from the Texas General Land Office, which encouraged Lubbock residents to help spread the word so the Marine veteran is not buried alone.
Canfield was born July 27, 1954, and served in the Marine Corps from September 1971 to September 1975, the release said. He received the National Defense Service Medal and the Rifle Marksman badge for his service.
He will receive military honors at the ceremony. If no next of kin attends, a Veterans Land Board representative will accept the United States flag on his behalf, according to the release.
The burial is one of two unaccompanied services scheduled at the cemetery that morning. The Veterans Land Board runs the Unaccompanied Veterans Program in partnership with local communities and veterans service organizations, describing it as a commitment that no veteran is ever left behind. The General Land Office lists media@glo.texas.gov and 512-936-9582 for questions.
The West Texas State Veterans Cemetery is the fifth Texas State Veterans Cemetery built and operated by the Veterans Land Board under the General Land Office.