Veteran killed in Vietnam still without a gravestone in Wichita Cemetery

WICHITA, Kansas (KSNW) — A Kansas family is trying to pay respects to their deceased loved one by trying to get him a headstone 50 years after he was killed in combat. Private First Class Christopher Gutierrez is buried at Calvary Cemetery in Wichita.

He is a Purple Heart recipient and was shot and killed in South Vietnam in 1970. His cousins ​​​​said they could not find his unmarked grave without help and believed he had a proper headstone.

Not an appropriate place to commemorate the ultimate sacrifice of a loved one.

“He died saving someone else’s life. He got a Purple Heart, but no stone, no tombstone,” Teresa Guerrero said.

Guerrero and her sister visited Calvary Cemetery last year to lay flowers and American flags, but since there was no headstone, they were unable to find their cousin’s final resting place.

She said his bare lot was not representative of his service or sacrifice.

“Oh my God, my little sister, her and I, we just opened our eyes and started crying because there was nothing, nothing,” Guerrero said.

She contacted the local VA office, which helped her mail VA Form 40-1330 to obtain a headstone, but was denied because she has no immediate family.

“She said I need to talk to a brother, sister or his parents, you’re a cousin and you don’t count,” Guerrero said.

His only living brother has Alzheimer’s, which makes it difficult to get him to fill out the paperwork.

Guerrero is determined to make his resting place worthy of a hero.

“There is nothing. It’s as if he didn’t fight for us,” Guerrero said.

She intends to continue working with the VA and the director of Calvary Cemetery to get a headstone for her cousin.