‘He deserves it’: Community brings distant family to funeral of veteran unclaimed for more than a year
BELL COUNTY, Texas (KWTX) - We recently shared with you how a funeral home in Temple has a large number of unclaimed bodies with no real way of contacting possible relatives.
One of those bodies was a local veteran that remained unclaimed for over a year but is now laid to rest at the Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery.
Glen Ybanez served in the Air Force and his body remained in storage since his death 2024 because no one had claimed him.
At least not until someone in the community recognized his name on the list of unclaimed bodies at the Crotty Funeral Home.
“Sarah, the owner of Biggie Mini Self Storage, came to the office and was like, you’re never going to believe what I saw,” said Sarah Jackson who helped Ybanez get the honors he earned. “I was like, what was that. Crotty Funeral Home posted a list of 24 unclaimed bodies and Glen’s name is on there.”
Jackson works at Biggie Mini Self Storage where Ybanez rented a unit and knowing he was a veteran, her heart was broken.
“I felt that I had to do something, I couldn’t just let him be there,” said Jackson. “So, I made a post on Belton city watch, temple city watch, and our community just started reaching out to me.”
People across the country helped her piece together clues that led to his discharge papers from the Air Force and a niece that had been adopted out of the family at a young age.
The same niece that was there to accept his flag thanks to Jackson’s efforts to honor the late veteran.
“They offered to get me here,” said Melissa Plasco, niece of Glen Ybanez. “They wanted me to collect the flag for him, and I feel like that’s what he wanted you know. He didn’t have anybody else and even though with adoption, it doesn’t matter. I was his niece, I’m his family.”
Plasco had only spoken to her uncle on the phone, making this the first time they were together.
“If it wasn’t for Sarah Jackson and everything that she did, and the community that backed her up as well,” said Plasco. “I mean, she was the main voice for him, this would’ve never happened.”
A veteran received the honors he earned, and a distant niece now has a piece of the uncle she only knew on the phone.
“You had the greatest life and I’m really proud to be your niece,” Plasco told her Ybanez at the cemetery.
Sarah Jackson, the community member that wouldn’t give up, says she and others are now planning to start a non-profit to help other vets in the same situation as Ybanez.
Their goal is to locate the family and make sure they receive the military funeral with honors they earned.
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