meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Our American Stories

She Buried Over 60 Unclaimed People, Including Many Veterans

Our American Stories

iHeartPodcasts

Documentary, Society & Culture

4.6816 Ratings

🗓️ 17 October 2024

⏱️ 11 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On this episode of Our American Stories, when Lanae Strovers was given the job of figuring out what to do with unclaimed urns at the funeral home she worked at, she took it personally...but that would make sense for someone who got into the mortuary business for personal reasons. Give her story a listen!

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)

Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

This is an I-Heart podcast.

0:14.1

And we return to our American stories.

0:17.9

Up next, a story out of Des Moines, Iowa from our great affiliate News Radio 1040, W.H.O.

0:25.9

When Lennay Strovers was given the job of figuring out what to do with unclaimed urns at the funeral

0:32.7

home she worked at, some of which belonged to veterans, she took it personally. But that would make sense for someone

0:40.0

who got into the mortuary business for personal reasons. Let's get into this story. Here's Lene.

0:50.6

When I was 21, I had a very, very good friend who died.

0:56.0

And I went to his funeral, and it was horrible.

1:01.0

It had absolutely nothing to do with him.

1:05.0

It wasn't personalized at all.

1:07.0

It wasn't a celebration of his life, which was an amazing life. It was just very

1:12.8

bland. And I was so frustrated that the person who was in charge of making this last

1:23.1

chapter of his life important didn't. I knew in that moment that it was what I was supposed to do

1:32.4

there was no questioning and I went home and sat on my couch and signed up for classes and went back

1:39.7

to school that Monday I was 25 25, single mom, working two jobs, and that was terrifying. You can watch

1:53.4

as many movies or read up as much as you want, but when you walk into that embalming

1:58.2

suite for the first time, and there is a body laying on the table,

2:04.0

for me it was very humbling because that was a person, someone's son, and the work that I was going

2:13.1

to do is what was going to give that family their final viewing.

2:26.3

When I was given the project to start reconnecting these urns that had been left behind, I started with three months of bed rest.

2:29.3

I wasn't able to walk and I am not a person that sits still very easily and I was terrified.

2:38.0

I was worried about my mental health for being on bed rest that long.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from iHeartPodcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of iHeartPodcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.