A Michigan man played a key role in building one of the longest bridges in the United States, surprised the public by saying it still has ashes after he was buried 15 years after his death in the funeral home near the iconic structure.
Larry Rubin rested Wednesday in Petoskey, 40 miles (64 km) from the Mackinac Bridge, which connects two Michigan peninsulas.
For decades, Rubin was a senior staff member of the Mackinac Bridge Administration, which manages the bridge, spanning five miles (8 kilometers) across the Mackinac Strait, which is considered the third longest suspension bridge to open in the United States in 1957.
When the bridge was built, “he had a big role because the authorities needed someone to make a decision. He served with excellence,” former board member Barbara Brown said Friday.
Brown said she was “shocked” when she saw Rubin's name listed in the St. Ignas newspaper. Fun Funeral Hall informs the public that it has many unclaimed cremation. His family apparently didn't pick them up after they died in 2010 at the age of 97.
Val Meyerson of B'nai Temple B'nai in Petoskey is familiar with the Jewish borough of Greenwood Cemetery and realizes that Rubin's first wife, Olga, was buried there in 1990. His name is already on the tombstone because he is expected to die eventually.
Melson said that friends from the Bridge Authority helped pay Rubin’s funeral. About twenty people participated in the grave service led by the rabbi.
“It's an honor for us to take turns filling the grave,” Brown said. “It's been ignored and forgotten for so long – it's moving.”
