WWII vet’s remains return home after 80 years

(ABC 6 News) – One Minnesota family spent their Labor Day finding some closure. A World War II veteran’s family was finally able to put him to rest Monday 80 years after his death.

Lloyd Timm was born July 24, 1922, in Kellogg, MN. He was one of six children. Timm graduated from Kellogg High School in 1940 and enlisted in the Navy in 1941. He was assigned to the USS Oklahoma. His brother, Warren, had also been assigned to the USS Oklahoma, but had been transferred to Jacksonville, FL, just prior to the attack.

Lloyd was 19 years old at the time of this death. On Monday, he would have been 99 years old.

The city of Kellogg, Minn. and the Timm family gathered to finally lay him to rest in his hometown.

His family said more people attended the ceremony than the entire population of Kellogg.

"Having 400 people come to a person that died 80 years ago. I mean 80 years ago, you’d be lucky to get 400 people at your funeral," Lloyd Ness, Timm’s nephew, said.

After his burial, the town’s new baseball field was dedicated to Timm and a new statue in his honor was unveiled.

"The ballpark is there, the figurehead of him is there, so he’ll never die. It’s just great for people to realize the sacrifice of our veterans," Ness said.

Timm was onboard the USS Oklahoma and was among 429 other crewmen who died on the ship that day.

After being buried in a mass grave for decades, his remains were finally identified in 2019 and his body arrived home for burial on Thursday.

"The sad thing is none of his brothers and sisters are still alive. So all the emotions that were going on in that cemetery were great, but they would have been tenfold if his brothers and sisters were there," Ness said.

He’s survived now by his many nieces and nephews.

"They always felt like they had a piece missing from their family. And now that piece has been found and returned to them," Lisa Jaeger, the Wabasha veteran’s affairs officer, said.

Timm was laid to rest Monday at the Greenfield Cemetery in Kellogg surrounded by his remaining family and the town of Kellogg.

"Lloyd we will not forget you. You will live on in our hearts and minds forever. We pray that you are resting in peace with your family and comrades," Jaeger said.

The U.S. Navy is still working on identifying the remains of hundreds of others who died during the attack on Pearl Harbor to give other families the same closure.