‘Loved his country’: Funeral held for 105-year-old veteran

FLINT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) - As mourners watched from cars, a 105-year-old World War II veteran was laid to rest in a Flint-area cemetery.

Ferrald Waller Sr. lived through the 1918 flu pandemic, served in Europe during World War II and worked for General Motors, MLive.com reported.

He died from natural causes Friday in Pontiac. Family members held a small funeral Monday to conform with Michigan’s limits on gatherings during the coronavirus outbreak. A granddaughter, Rachelle Ruffin, wore a face mask near the flag-draped casket.

Members of Waller’s church sat in vehicles near the grave site at River Rest Cemetery in Flint Township.

“He loved his family and he loved his country,” granddaughter Julia Ruffin said. “He lived through a lot - a pandemic, racism - but he always said, ‘You know, believe in God, and don’t worry about stuff.’”