Haines City staff helps woman find unmarked grave of little brother who died five decades ago

HAINES CITY, Fla. - Veronica Bermudes never would have found the grave of her little brother, Ricardo, had it not been for sharp eyes and a caring staff at city hall in Haines City. 

Ricardo Dimas passed away in 1973 when he was just under two years old. Bermudes knew the Haines City cemetery where he was buried, but the grave marker and records had been lost. 

So when Veronica went to city hall, officials weren't sure they could help. 

RELATED: Tampa's first-ever cemetery coordinator helps preserve historic cemeteries now owned by the city

"We had nothing, and I said to her, ‘I need something, so we can start digging and start going backwards,’" said Haines City Clerk Sharon Lauther.

All Bermudes could find were some faded photos of her brother's grave site taken decades ago. There was no headstone on his grave, just her father kneeling at the grave site.   

"As she brought us the pictures, she had one that had a portion of the cemetery where he used to kneel. We zoomed in on that picture, and we saw a headstone," Lauther said.

It was someone else's headstone, but not far away was an empty space on the ground. 

READ: Haines City’s first dog park named after fire department’s rescue ‘Ember’ who passed away

"We decided to probe the unmarked grave that was next to this headstone, and low and behold, the staff member told me there's a body there," said Lauther.  

Bermudes said she was glad they were able to find her brother's unmarked grave. 

"There was something missing that I needed to come here and find him," Bermudes said. 

She plans to acquire a permanent headstone so that the grave won't be lost again.