When a group of St. Johns High School alumni from the class of 1964 learned that their former school janitor, Herbert O’Hara, had been buried without a marker, they set out to change that. The discovery came as Bruce Atkinson, a former classmate, was researching gravestones for a reunion and realized O’Hara’s grave was unmarked.

Atkinson’s curiosity deepened when he uncovered that O’Hara had served in the U.S. Army during World II. “I thought, wow, not only was he a janitor, he was a serviceman without a grave,” Atkinson said. He enlisted the help of fellow alumna Hughleen Thorsen, and together they began piecing together O’Hara’s life.

Finding proof of service

The pair discovered that O’Hara had no surviving family to arrange a proper burial. Their research led them to a final pay voucher from the National Archives, which provided the official documentation needed to request a military‑eligible headstone.

“We were in the place of his family, but we’ll have everything he should have had, and that was our goal,” Thorsen explained.

A ceremony to remember

With the paperwork secured, the alumni organized a solemn ceremony at O’Hara’s gravesite. An honor guard stood watch, a 21‑gun salute rang out, and taps played as a tribute to his service. “I’ll be standing there, saluting him,” Atkinson said, describing the moment.

Thorsen added, “It’ll be everything he should have had when he died,” emphasizing the importance of giving O’Hara the respect owed to a veteran.

Missing photograph and next steps

While the headstone now honors O’Hara’s military service, one piece of his story remains elusive: a photograph. St. Johns once occupied a building on Creighton University’s campus before it was demolished. Journalist Jeremy Fredricks contacted Creighton’s archives, but archivists could not locate an image of O’Hara.

Thorsen said finding that photograph is now her next goal, hoping to finally put a face to the name she and her classmates have worked so hard to commemorate.

Community impact

The effort highlights how local volunteers can preserve the memory of those who served, even when the individuals themselves were modest and largely unknown. “The classmates acknowledge there is a remarkable element to what they have done: they went to such lengths for a man few of them really knew,” said one participant.

By securing a proper headstone and honoring O’Hara’s sacrifice, the St. Johns alumni have given their community a tangible reminder of the sacrifices made by ordinary citizens during the nation’s greatest conflict.

Original reporting: KMTV 3 News Now (Scripps) – local — read the source article.