Two employees of a Florida funeral home were fired after a video went viral of their hearse parked outside a Dunkin' Donuts — still carrying the body of a veteran.
Our partners at WFTS report the two employees of Veterans Funeral Care were supposed to deliver the body of 84-year-old Lt. Col. Jesse Coleman to his service.
"What could they have been thinking? I wouldn't have the foggiest idea," said Veterans Funeral Care President Jim Rudolph.
The president of the company says the employees' actions were "absolutely terrible" and went against the company's policy of honoring veterans.
Lauren Price, of the political group Veteran Warriors, put the act's disrespect in perspective.
"I've been on funerals where we had to travel four hours to do a funeral in full uniform in the dead of summer in Florida, and we didn't stop to get coffee," Price said.
Rob Carpenter, the man who recorded the video, sent it to Price, who then got in touch with Veterans Funeral Care. While she was disappointed in the employees' actions, she says she didn't push for them to be fired.
According to the Veterans Funeral Care website, Coleman had served in Korea and Vietnam. He was highly decorated, receiving the Legion of Merit and two Bronze Stars, among other awards, during his service.
