Will Johnson of Rock Springs, Wyo., never meant to miss his father's interment at Black Hills National Cemetery.

Lyle Johnson, a World War II veteran from Sturgis, died Nov. 9, 2008, days after the season's first blizzard paralyzed western South Dakota. He was 85.

He served in the Army during World War II, a paratrooper who completed several combat jumps in the Pacific theater combat zone.

Family from throughout the country made it to Sturgis for services, but when it came time for the burial, Will Johnson received some bad news:

The road to the cemetery was closed because of the weather.

With no vacation time left, family members had to go their separate ways, and their patriarch was buried by cemetery staff.

Not being at his father's burial did not sit well with Johnson, a Vietnam veteran from a family of veterans buried at the national cemetery.

"It's a very, very special place to me," Johnson said. "I don't look forward to dying, but I look forward to being laid to rest there."

On Friday morning, Johnson, his wife and son finally made it to the national cemetery for the Unaccompanied Veterans' Memorial ceremony, a quarterly event recognizing those veterans who were interred without family present.

"This is a really solemn place for us," Johnson said after the ceremony. "We are believers in 'You are never forgotten.'"

The attendees, mostly members of The Retired Enlisted Association and Patriot Guard Riders, remained silent for the 15-minute ceremony. The only sounds were the veterans' names being read, the three-volley salute, the clinking of ejected shells hitting cement and taps sounding.

As far as cemetery director Sara Elton knows, the Johnsons were the first to attend a ceremony honoring their own family member since Black Hills National Cemetery began holding the quarterly memorials in 2007.

All 125 national cemeteries do something to recognize veterans buried without family present, Elton said. For smaller ones, that may mean a ceremony on Memorial Day. For larger ones, it may be a daily remembrance.

On average, 40 to 50 veterans are buried unaccompanied at Black Hills National Cemetery every year, Elton said.

There's no one reason for why veterans are buried unaccompanied. Sometimes, it's a matter of distance, health issues or weather; other times, it's just part of a slower grieving process, Elton said.

"When taps starts to play, it's hard to keep everything together," she said. "Everyone has their own reason."

For Mark Aaron of Sioux Falls, family health problems and another death in the family kept him from traveling to his older brother's burial in December.

John S. Aaron, also of Sioux Falls, served in the Marine Corps and received a Purple Heart for injuries suffered in Vietnam. He died Dec. 16, 2008. He was 60.

The family is planning a trip this spring or summer to pay its respects, Mark Aaron said.

"I'm a Marine myself. Of course, I wanted to be there for my brother. He's like a double brother," Aaron said.

"It just didn't work out, but he's not forgotten, believe me."

Contact Emilie Rusch at 394-8453 or emilie.rusch@rapidcityjournal.com