Requiem for the unclaimed dead

On a grassy hillside conscionable eastbound of downtown Los Angeles, a fewer twelve mourners gathered past week to wage respects to 1,865 radical whose names they did not cognize — men, women and children whose ashes precocious joined the remains of 100,000 others laid to remainder present since 1896.

The departed interred astatine Los Angeles County Cemetery had 1 happening successful common, and 1 happening separating them from those connected the different broadside of the rusty chain-link obstruction demarcating the region crippled and neighboring Evergreen Cemetery: They had neither the means for a backstage burial nor household to assertion their bodies.

Each twelvemonth successful December, those whose remains person been unclaimed for 3 years are memorialized with an interfaith ceremony. On Thursday, members of the nationalist looked connected successful respectful soundlessness arsenic representatives of L.A. County’s galore faiths acknowledged the dormant the mode they mightiness person wanted: with a Buddhist chant, a smudging of sage, the Lord’s Prayer successful Swahili, Hindi and Spanish.

The blessings said implicit the freshly turned world hinted astatine the lives erstwhile lived. Many were unhoused. A tiny fistful were ne'er identified. Some were children.

People be Thursday’s ceremonial astatine the Los Angeles County Cemetery.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Brian Donnelly drove from Hollywood to witnesser the ceremony. He suspects a fig of the unhoused radical he’s travel to cognize from his vicinity implicit the years are interred here, helium said.

“I deliberation it’s important,” helium said of the ceremony, his dependable catching. “You travel into this satellite with somebody. You don’t merit to spell retired alone.”

In caller years, those who way the mode we unrecorded and dice person noticed a disquieting change.

Although determination are much tools than ever to place the chartless dormant and way down surviving household members, the percent of radical whose adjacent of kin cannot — oregon take not — to assertion their remains is increasing, a displacement sociologists property to changing household dynamics, increasing mobility and an epidemic of loneliness.

To spell unclaimed “is benignant of an exclamation constituent connected a beingness that was marked by societal isolation, particularly successful aboriginal years,” said Pamela Prickett, an subordinate prof of sociology astatine Pomona College. “We’re not afloat grasping conscionable however overmuch our consciousness of what we beryllium each different has changed.”

A tiny marker connected a region sedate site.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Prickett is the author, with UCLA sociologist Stefan Timmermans, of “The Unclaimed: Abandonment and Hope successful the City of Angels.” In their research, Prickett and Timmermans found, little than 1.2% of those who died successful L.A. region successful the 1970s were unclaimed by adjacent of kin. In 2013, the astir caller twelvemonth from which information is available, 2.75% of region decedents were not picked up.

That fig has continued to rise, the researchers write, some successful Los Angeles County and beyond. The percent of decedents unclaimed successful Maryland, 1 of fewer states that maintains specified records, was 2.1% successful 2000 and 4.5% successful 2021, the publication notes.

To beryllium unclaimed does not successful itself mean that a idiosyncratic was unloved successful beingness oregon unmissed successful death. Prickett sees it arsenic the culmination of respective important shifts successful the mode we live, the nett effect of which becomes evident lone erstwhile we’ve died.

When the region picks up a idiosyncratic who has died successful a facility, residence oregon nationalist area, and nary volition oregon idiosyncratic with powerfulness of lawyer tin beryllium found, the Office of Decedent Affairs and the nationalist head enactment to find adjacent of kin and find if the deceased died with immoderate assets. If the region can’t find immoderate surviving relatives but the deceased had capable savings, the nationalist head arranges for a backstage burial.

Longer lifespans summation the likelihood of a idiosyncratic outliving siblings, spouses and adjacent big children who mightiness measurement guardant to assertion them. They besides summation the accidental that a idiosyncratic volition outlive their fiscal resources.

“Because idiosyncratic died astatine that infinitesimal without wealth doesn’t mean that the years preceding that were ones successful which they didn’t person money,” Prickett said. “It mightiness conscionable beryllium that the nursing location costs zapped their savings.”

If the idiosyncratic died penniless but the notified adjacent of kin does not prime up the body, the region arranges for cremation. It stores the cremated remains for 3 years, successful lawsuit a comparative comes guardant to assertion them. Very often, they don’t.

L.A. County charges astir $400 to prime up cremated remains. Many adjacent of kin deficiency the acceptable cash, oregon the wherewithal to navigate the ineligible process to waive the fee.

Genealogist Megan Smolenyak is the laminitis of Unclaimed Persons, a squad of unpaid researchers who person assisted section jurisdictions, including L.A. County, successful tracking down adjacent of kin.

Some archer Smolenyak that the prime of their narration with the deceased doesn’t warrant the outgo of picking up their ashes oregon arranging a funeral.

“Sometimes, adjacent erstwhile there’s rather adjacent surviving relatives, they conscionable won’t judge the work of being adjacent of kin due to the fact that they can’t spend it,” Smolenyak said. “It’s like, ‘I haven’t heard from them successful 20 years, and I can’t conscionable spend a ceremonial retired of the blue.’”

L.A. General Hospital chaplain Nick Jordan kneels successful supplication astatine the sedate of unclaimed dead.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The COVID pandemic whitethorn person further weakened household connections. With restrictions connected question and infirmary visitations, last reconciliations with household that whitethorn person happened successful different years simply didn’t, said the Rev. Chris Ponnet, a Catholic clergyman and manager of spiritual attraction astatine Los Angeles General Medical Center.

“It was conscionable a batch of people, each alone,” helium said.

Those whose ashes were buried past week died successful 2021. The region has not yet released the names of those interred, which volition yet beryllium publicly available successful lawsuit long-lost kin travel seeking them.

On 1 broadside of the chain-link obstruction ringing the region cemetery, the superb reddish of tinsel and caller poinsettias adorning Evergreen graves stood retired against the grey chromatic and sky. On the other, the radical of Los Angeles went astir their concern — immoderate of them lonely, immoderate of them unhoused, immoderate unaware that they were passing the spot they volition 1 time travel to rest.