Better late than never

There is an interesting obituary in the Union Tribune this morning. Quite a story. Anybody want to go to the ceremony with me?

Ware, Edwin 08/22/1845 ~ 12/29/1924 CARIBOU, CA/ SAN DIEGO 

California settler and Civil War veteran, Edwin Ware, will receive inurnment 89 years and one day after his death. In the 1850/60's, Edwin's family settled 160 acres in what became the Northern California town of Paradise. Edwin, the eldest of six children, served in the Civil War in Company I, 2nd Cavalry Regiment of California for the Union in 1864-1866. After the Civil War, the Ware family continued to prosper and by 1879 owned 240 acres of prime farm land on the Paradise Ridge. Edwin also spent time mining along the Feather River in Plumas County, where he met and married Mariah Williams, a full-blooded Maidu woman, in 1888. With the Indian conflicts of the times fresh in their minds, Edwin's family was aghast at his marriage and disowned him. Edwin sold his Paradise lands back to his family, and he and Mariah made their home near Old Caribou in Plumas County. In later years, Edwin, a cheerful man who greatly resembled Santa, fell ill with Parkinson's. His siblings finally relented enough to help Edwin to a veterans' hospital, but they forbade his wife and daughter ever to visit, condemning Edwin to die alone on December 29, 1924 and keeping secret the place of his burial. Not until 2003 did the descendants of Edwin locate his remains and discover the circumstances of his burial. Edwin had been buried without services in an uncared-for, remote section of a Petaluma Cemetery at 10:30 at night on December 30, 1924, the day after his death. Edwin's descendants came together and obtained a court order in 2005 to reclaim his remains, which were moved to the family mortuary in Quincy, California. The family, then unable to obtain permission to bury Edwin next to his beloved wife Mariah (d.1/13/1930) in a Maidu Cemetery now on Federal land, has searched for a suitable resting place for the past eight years. That place, Miramar National Cemetery, will receive Edwin's remains 89 years and 1 day after his death. Edwin and Mariah had one child, Elsie, (d. 1988). Edwin had four great-grandchildren: Laura Mae (Ellis) Gentry (d. 1997), Bea (Ellis) Olivieri of Modesto, CA, Elsie (Ellis) Hill of San Marcos, CA, and Beverly (Ellis) Malarkey (d. 1981). Services will be held at Miramar National Cemetery, 5795 Nobel Drive, San Diego promptly at 11 am on Monday, December 30. Mario Olivieri, husband of Bea Olivieri, who died May 18, 2010 will also be inurned on this day at Miramar. Mario, Lt. Col Air Force (Ret.) and recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross in addition to several other decorations, and Edwin will be laid to rest alongside one another. The day marks a joyful end to a long odyssey for this family. The family suggests that in celebration of this day, joyful and seasonal attire is appropriate.
Published in U-T San Diego on Dec. 27, 2013

I found some more information on this interesting man and his family, here.