Strangers Come Together to Honor Fallen Veteran with No Known Family

Hundreds came to the Arizona Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Marana, Arizona, on Tuesday to pay their respects to Darrell Lee Arelt, a Vietnam veteran who had no known family to contact after he died from a short illness in November.
Arelt, 73, an Army veteran, served as a second lieutenant during the war.
Nick De Gennaro, owner of the mobile home park where Arelt resided, and his wife, stepped up to create the memorial service when he discovered Arelt was an unaccompanied veteran with no known next of kin. Arelt lived in the mobile park for about four and a half years prior to his death. His illness took him rather quickly, De Gennaro said, and after he died, the landlord noticed no close friends or family members came to the hospital or arranged funeral services. De Gennaro and his wife took it upon themselves to make sure this veteran wouldn’t be forgotten.