St. Augustine police couldn’t find this homeless veteran’s family, invites public to attend his funeral
St. Augustine police shared this image of John Meade Jr., and invited the public to attend his funeral where he will be buried with full honors. (St. Augustine Police Department)
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - U.S. Army veteran John Meade Jr. was known around the historic city of St. Augustine, Florida.
Police said he lived “off the grid” for years, but described him as a “unique soul.” That’s why, when he died, they tried to find his relatives – but had no luck and exhausted all resources to find his family history.
Instead, they found out he had a military history, and will receive the full honors for his funeral. He served the U.S. Army between 1966 and 1968 and was honorably discharged.
Officer Steven Fischer told FOX 30 he spent at least 80 hours trying to find information on him.
“It was kind of my mission to make sure that he got what he deserved,” he said. “He was just a friendly person, a nice person.”
“We always enjoyed seeing and waving at him and he would wave back. He was a part of our town,” said David Carni, who also knew John.
St. Augustine police said because they couldn’t find his family, they invite the public to attend his funeral which takes place Friday, January 17 at 2 p.m. at the Jacksonville National Cemetery. The address is 4083 Lannie Road.
“The more people that can honor John, the better,” Fischer said.