A decorated, active-duty Air Force colonel of nearly 30 years was denied burial on a paperwork technicality.
Tara Lunardi thought the last thing they would be dealing with after she lost her battle with cancer would be bureaucratic red tape. But in the process of trying to lay their loved one to rest, that's all they've encountered, leaving the family deeply grieving.
“She loved the Air Force, and she loved her country,” said her mother, Kathleen Unger. “Her career was just amazing, she had so many experiences." “She said 'yes, I think I would like Arlington,'" Mark Lunardi said."I was typing all of this in a word document ... it says Arlington on it." Instead of being laid to rest, the colonel's family has found themselves caught up in what they call bureaucratic red tape.
“She reevaluated her final decisions verbally, to several people," Unger said."And before she died, I don't think she was thinking about any military forms at that time. So we didn't think about anything, either." “We offer our deepest condolences to the family of United States Air Force Col. Tara Lunardi during this difficult time.
WUSA9 reached out to Prince William County Courts, which would have jurisdiction on this matter. The court system advised that the family can only proceed with a lawyer, and they sent WUSA9 a lawyer referral phone number. “When she made that decision, she didn't have all these elements in her life," Unger said of her daughter's wishes."And now that you're facing life threatening issues and, and looking at leaving this earth and your family is left, things change.”
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