(Bernice Corpuz/WBZ NewsRadio 1030)
TAUNTON (WBZ-AM) -- It's been over seven decades since he died serving his country, but Technical Sgt. John Brady was finally laid to rest in a Taunton cemetery Thursday.
Brady was just 26 years old when his B-17 bomber was shot down in Germany in 1944--but the crash site was not identified until 2016. Brady's remains were later identified by DNA. The test almost didn't happen, Brady's son Michael told WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Bernice Corpuz.
"I got stubborn and did not give my DNA," he said. "Thank goodness that the cousin in Maine they first talked to [did]."
Michael Brady was only 59 days old when his father was killed in action.
Residents lined the streets as the procession bearing Tech Sgt. Brady's remains passed through the town. Barbra Knauber and her son Jack stood along Route 140, holding flags as the hearse passed by.
"It's important to honor people that fought for the life that we have," Barbara "This poor family, really, not only did they lose a family member--it took so long to get him home."
Michael said his father's funeral services give his family some closure.
"Nobody ever thought it was gonna happen," he said. "There was always a hole that could not be filled, for [my mother] and for the rest of the family, and now it has been."
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Bernice Corpuz (@BerniceWBZ) reports