Hundreds turn out at cemetery for funeral of unclaimed Augusta veteran [Video]

AUGUSTA — Hundreds of people gathered Thursday afternoon at the Maine Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery to send off Gerry R. Brooks one last time.

Brooks, 86, of Augusta, was a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, according to his obituary. He died on May 18, 2024, about three weeks after he was diagnosed with brain and several other types of cancer.

No one in his family stepped forward to claim his body. But after a Facebook post circulated with news of the funeral and the situation, hundreds of people showed up Thursday on a sweltering hot afternoon with temperatures in the 90s for Brooks’ funeral, including one person who fainted because of the heat.

Katie Riposta, director of Riposta Funeral Home where Brooks’ body was kept, said she received inquires from 100 or so people who called to say they would assist with the funeral for the “unclaimed” veteran.

“There has been an outpouring …