The Springfield community showed respect and support as the hearse carrying Welch’s casket passed through to the cemetery, a response that overwhelmed the family.
“Isn’t it amazing,” said Ann Welch Ianni of Springfield, who with Carolyn Ryan of Kettering are Billy’s only surviving siblings. “Everyone has been so supportive – the Navy, the people in town, the church. It was just beautiful.”
An enlistee who dropped out of Catholic Central High School to serve, Billy was on the USS Oklahoma, the first ship hit during the attack, spurring the United States’ entry into World War II. He had just turned 18 a month before.
Billy was one of 429 sailors who died on the ship. Several bodies were never identified, including Billy’s, leaving a gap in the family’s lives.
“He was still talked about all the time,” said Tony Hannon, Billy’s nephew. “He’s still 18 in the picture we have.”
The U.S. Department of Defense has worked to use DNA and other information to match remains of unidentified military personnel so families could have closure and pay for the burial.
“The Navy really stepped up to take care of this,” Hannon said.
The family found out last summer and the remains were returned Thursday.
Saturday began with a family gathering at Conroy Funeral Home. Many hugs and smiles were exchanged for those traveling from as far as California, Florida and Colorado.
Several are named William in tribute to the man they never knew but are proud of.
Navy representatives were also on hand, including Rear Admiral Linnea Sommer-Weddington. This was her third such memorial for a Pearl Harbor sailor, but the first where siblings were still alive to share the moment; it is usually nieces and nephews.
“I’m just thankful for a family to get to bring their sailor home to be buried with their mom and dad,” she said. “We’re making sure families get closure.”
A Catholic funeral Mass followed at St. Joseph Church, where Billy attended and was baptized. The pews were filled, with U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown among the attendees.
The route to Calvary Cemetery was lined with even more supporters. East Leffel Lane and East Possum Road were dotted with American flags, people saluting and wishing the family well.
The procession passed VFW Post 8673 Rocco-Welch on the way, which is named in tribute to Billy, and lined with veterans.
Craig Jeanneret and several family members and friends set up lawn chairs and flags to support the procession from his home at the corner of Leffel and Possum.
“We wanted to show our patriotism and respect,” Craig Jeanneret said. Several of his family members served in the Navy.
At the cemetery, a 48-star American flag, in tribute to the time of his passing, draped the coffin as various Navy members paid tribute.
Billy’s niece, Pat Ryan-Bergljung, fought back tears at the time. But they were more of joy than sadness.
“He didn’t belong there (Pearl Harbor),” she said.
A Pearl Harbor survivors group meeting in 2007 in her home in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., inspired her to try to get her uncle back home. Ryan-Bergljung confessed she never thought she’d see the day, but felt closure and pride.
“I’ve been gone for 40 years and I am so proud of Springfield right now,” she said.
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