DNA Confirms Unclaimed Veteran Is Her Father, She Seeks Help

Meagan Heisinger received some good news recently that could help finally bring a veteran family member home. 

DNA tests confirmed James Bradley Lane is her father. 

Lane, a Vietnam Army veteran, died in 2017 while living in Washington State. He was 62. However, without next of kin to contact following his death, Lane was designated as an unclaimed veteran. For a few months, Lane’s remains were kept by the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office in Tacoma, Washington, until they were recovered by the Missing in America Project, an organization that helps find unclaimed remains of veterans. 

From there, the Department of Veterans Affairs determined that Lane, who served from September 1974 to May 1975, was discharged honorably, allowing his cremated remains to be interned at the Washington State Veterans Cemetery in Medical Lake, Washington in 2018. 

Daughter Works to Bring Dad Home

Military.com wrote about Heisinger’s efforts to bring her father’s remains back to Colorado, his home state, last December. Heisinger never really knew Lane, having only spent time with him as a baby. But as she grew older, she desperately wanted to find him and was devastated to learn he died in 2017. 

She hoped to transfer his remains from Washington to Colorado, but quickly realized the process would be harder than she ever imagined. But a large hurdle was lifted last week when Heisinger confirmed that a DNA test showed Lane was indeed her father. 

“I have been sitting with this for a few days. I’ve been experiencing a whirlwind of emotions. I’m so grateful for everyone who has helped me get here,” Heisinger wrote on GoFundMe. 

“Now we move to the next steps. I plan to talk to my lawyer and the cemetery’s (lawyer) and see what updates on cost will look like, and then I will update the GoFundMe again. Thank you to everyone who donated and who continues to donate. The costs I’m enduring to do all of this are huge. So, any help I’ve gotten I’ve been extremely grateful beyond words.” 

Heisinger set up a GoFundMe account last November to help raise money to cover costs associated with obtaining her father’s remains.

On Tuesday, Heisinger posted that her lawyer said it would cost about $7,000 to transfer Lane’s remains from Medical Lake, Washington, to Littleton, Colorado, where she lives. As of Tuesday afternoon, she raised $2,180. The goal is to reach $10,000. 

“We almost have him home,” Heisinger wrote. “Please help me continue to do this. It means the absolute world to me.” 

For the past several months, Heisinger has worked to secure proper paperwork to obtain custody of her father’s remains, such as his military records.

“I am asking for more than I need for extra things like his DD214, birth certificate, death certificate, fees to mail him to me, fees from (the) funeral home to pick him up, and any other fees I may need,” she wrote. 

The entire process has been stressful for Heisinger, but she can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that science was on her side and she’s one step closer to having her father with her, making up – in a small way – for all the years they spent apart.